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They  plunged  together  into  the  icy  water  and  swam 
vigorously  to  the  other  shore. 

(Page  163)  Frontispiece 


POLLY'S 
SUMMER  VACATION 


BY 

DOROTHY  WHITEHILL 

Author  of  "Polly's  First  Year  at  Boarding  School,"  etc 


ILLUSTRATED  BY 
CHARLES  L.  WRENN 


BARSE  &  HOPKINS 

PUBLISHERS 

NEWARK,  N.  J.  NEW  YORK,  N.  Y. 


Copyright,  1917 
By 

Babse  &  Hopkins 


Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


Printed  in  the  United  States  of  America 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

I    Off  for  the  Summer  9 

II   Banker  Fords  the  Creek  24 

III  The  First  Call  38 

IV  Maud  55 

V   The  Summer  Begins  72 

VI   Uncle  Cy's  Lobster  Pots  86 

VII   Polly  and  Bob  Conspire  100 

VIII   The  Fourth  of  July  114 

IX   More  House  Party  127 

X   The  Invitation  137 

XI   The  Visit  148 

XII   The  First  Day  at  Camp  162 

XIII  At  Hill's  Camp  175 

XIV  The  Mystery  Solved  189 

XV   Polly  Entertains  200 

XVI   Off  for  Boston  212 

XVII  The  Surprise  in  the  House  of  the 

Seven  Gables  218 

XVIII   Thoughts  of  School  231 

XIX    Shopping  244 

XX    The  End  of  the  Summer  253 


ILLUSTKATIONS 

PAGE 

They  plunged  together  into  the  icy  water  and  swam 
vigorously  to  the  other  shore    .    .    .  Frontispiece 

Polly  slipped  the  halter  over  his  head  and  led  him 
back  to  the  stable  27 

Polly  was  a  good  player,  and  as  Lois  had  said,  Bob 
was  a  wonder  135 

At  twelve  o'clock,  they  struck  camp  and  had 
luncheon  183 


POLLY'S  SUMMER  VACATION 


CHAPTEB  I 

OFF  FOR  THE  SUMMER 

Polly  was  agog  with  excitement.  After  a  busy 
week  of  preparation,  followed  by  two  days  of 
actual  packing,  the  day  for  the  start  to  the  coun- 
try had  at  last  arrived. 

That,  in  itself,  was  delightful,  but  add  to  it  the 
joyful  fact  that  Lois  Farwell,  her  very  best  friend, 
and  Lois'  mother,  were  to  accompany  her,  and  you 
have  her  real  reason  for  rejoicing. 

Polly  had  lived,  until  the  previous  year,  in  a 
sleepy  New  England  town  with  her  Aunt,  Miss 
Hannah  Pendleton,  at  whose  death  she  had  come 
to  New  York,  to  live  with  her  Uncle  Rodney 
Pendleton.  Between  them,  they  had  decided  on 
a  boarding  school,  and  when  this  story  opens, 
Polly  had  just  finished  a  thoroughly  wonderful 
year  at  Seddon  Hall. 

The  new  and  happy  contact  with  girls  of  her 
own  age  had  stood  in  the  light  of  her  first  great 

9 


10  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

adventure,  and  now,  with  the  prospect  of  the  sum- 
mer vacation  spent  in  her  old  home,  Polly  felt 
she  was  about  to  embark  upon  her  second. 

Eleven  o'clock  found  her  standing  under  the 
clock  in  the  middle  of  the  Grand  Central  Station. 
She  looked  worried  and  expectant.  The  mass  of 
people  about  her  surged  this  way  and  that;  bag- 
gage-laden porters  with  red  caps  acted  as  guides 
to  their  flurried  and  bewildered  charges.  Babies 
fretted  and  cried,  children  waved  pails  and 
shovels  in  the  air,  and  old  ladies  bustled  about 
mopping  their  brows,  for  the  day  was  oppres- 
sively warm. 

Every  now  and  then  a  bell  would  jingle  noisily 
and  somewhere  out  of  sight  a  gate  would  clang 
with  alarming  finality.  It  looked  as  if  the  greater 
part  of  New  York  were  about  to  start  on  a  vaca- 
tion. 

Polly  wondered  if  there  could  be  any  one  left 
in  the  city.  With  a  sigh  of  relief  she  saw  Uncle 
Eoddy — he  had  been  attending  to  the  trunks — 
appear  through  a  distant  doorway  and  make  his 
way  to  her. 

"Well,  Tiddledewinks,  did  you  think  I  was 
lost?"  he  asked. 

"No,  not  quite,"  Polly  answered,  smiling,  "but 
I  thought  you  were  a  long  time.  Shouldn't  the 
Farwejls  be  here  by  now?"  she  asked,  looking 
between  the  hundreds  of  heads  that  bobbed  be- 


Off  for  the  Summer 


11 


fore  her  in  her  attempt  to  locate  her  friends' 
familiar  figures. 

"There  they  are,"  she  exclaimed  a  minute 
later;  "I  know  that's  Lois  in  the  blue  sailor 
suit." 

"I  thought  you'd  never  come,"  she  said,  after 
the  Farwells  had  joined  them  and  greetings  had 
been  exchanged. 

"So  did  we,"  laughed  Mrs.  Farwell,  "it  has 
been  an  exciting  morning.  Dr.  Farwell  was 
called  home  suddenly;  one  of  his  patients  is  very 
ill." 

The  Farwells  lived  in  Albany,  but  they  had 
been  in  New  York  shopping  for  a  week. 

"I  thought  we'd  never  get  breakfast  at  the 
hotel." 

"And  to  crown  all,"  Lois  interrupted  her 
mother,  "our  taxi  broke  down  and  we  had  to 
change  to  a  hansom.  Never  mind  though,  we  are 
here,  thank  goodness!" 

At  this  point  the  porter  came  up  to  them,  and 
respectfully  touching  his  cap  suggested  that  they 
board  the  train.  Uncle  Eoddy  saw  them  through 
the  gate  and  comfortably  seated  in  the  parlor 
car.  He  supplied  Mrs.  Farwell  with  magazines 
and  the  girls  with  candy.  After  a  big  hug  and 
kiss  for  Polly  he  left  them,  just  as  the  long  train 
pulled  out  of  the  shed. 

"Poll,  we're  really  going,"  Lois  exulted,  snug- 


12  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


gling  back  comfortably  in  her  chair.  1  'Isn't  it 
thrilling  ?" 

" It's  the  most  exciting  thing  that  ever  happened 
to  me  in  my  whole  life,"  Polly  replied  solemnly. 

Then  changing  her  mood  for  a  gayer  one,  she 
added : 

"We  ought  to  have  a  wonderful  summer  to- 
gether. Oh,  I'm  so  crazy  to  see  the  old  place 
again." 

"You'll  have  to  show  me  every  single  thing 
about  the  village  and  the  house,  so  that  I'll  know 
all  about  it  before  we  have  any  of  the  girls  up 
to  visit  us,"  Lois  said. 

"Oh,  I  will,  that  won't  take  long.  "Who  will 
we  have  first,  Betty?" 

"Yes,  of  course,  but  let's  wait  till  Bob  comes." 

Bob  was  Lois'  big  brother.  He  was  just  pre- 
paring to  enter  college  and  was  busy  with  en- 
trance examinations.  He  had  promised  to  spend 
a  good  part  of  his  summer  with  the  girls.  Polly, 
who  knew  him  only  slightly,  had  decided  secretly 
that  she  liked  him. 

"When  will  he  come?"  she  asked. 

"Oh,  he'll  get  up  before  the  first  of  July;  he's 
promised  to.  Polly,  wouldn't  it  be  fun  if  he 
brought  up  some  of  his  friends'?" 

Polly  thought  it  would,  most  decidedly. 

"We  could  have  a  house  party  and  we'd  ask 
Bet,"  she  exclaimed. 


Off  for  the  Summer 


13 


Mrs.  Farwell,  reading  her  magazine,  was  ap- 
pealed to. 

"  Mother,  do  you  think  Bob  would  bring  up 
some  of  his  friends  this  summer?"  Lois  asked; 
"we  want  to  have  a  house  party." 

Mrs.  Farwell  smiled  at  the  two  eager  faces 
before  her. 

"I  think  hell  be  delighted  to,  darling.  I'll  sug- 
gest it  when  I  write  him.  That  is  if  Polly  thinks 
there  will  be  plenty  of  room,"  she  replied. 

"Oh,  yes,"  Polly  assured  her,  thinking  of  the 
old  rambling  house  with  its  unexpected  wings. 

As  if  the  matter  were  quite  settled,  Mrs.  Far- 
well  turned  again  to  her  book,  and  Polly  and  Lois 
made  plans  for  the  house  party. 

The  enthralling  topic  occupied  them  for  the 
next  hour  and  even  the  candy  boxes  were  for- 
gotten. 

The  train  sped  on  its  way,  the  busy,  congested 
streets  begrimed  with  soot  gave  place  to  the 
fresh,  green  fields  of  the  country. 

At  one  o'clock  they  reached  New  Haven  and 
had  just  time  to  hurry  to  the  hotel  opposite  the 
station  for  luncheon  before  catching  their  way 
train. 

"Well,  that  wasn't  much  of  a  wait,"  gasped 
Lois,  tossing  her  tennis  racket  in  its  leather  case 
on  to  an  empty  seat,  and  causing  a  cloud  of 
dust  to  rise  from  the  stuffy  plush  covering.  A 


14  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

moment  later,  the  engine  backed  up,  and  after 
a  clumsy  jolt,  they  lumbered  on  their  way. 

By  the  time  New  Haven  was  left  behind  and 
they  came  to  the  first  real  country  that  was  fa- 
miliar to  Polly,  she  began  to  have  misgivings. 

Suppose  after  all,  Lois  and  her  mother  failed 
to  like  the  old  place,  suppose  they  found  the  sleepy 
village  uninteresting,  and  the  big  house  on  the 
hill  lonely.  With  a  gasp  of  dismay  she  remem- 
bered that  Aunt  Hannah  had  steadfastly  refused 
to  replace  the  lamps  and  candles  with  gas  or 
electricity.  It  had  been  the  one  modern  improve- 
ment she  had  been  deaf  to.  Polly  saw  with  horror 
the  old  mahogany  table  in  the  long  hall  with  its 
half  dozen  silver  candlesticks.   Aloud  she  said: 

"Oh,  I'd  forgotten  all  about  that.' 7 

"About  what,  dear?"  Mrs.  Farwell  asked. 

"Why,  that  there  are  no  lights  in  the  house, 
only  lamps  and  candles,' '  Polly  told  her.  But, 
if  she  expected  to  see  a  look  of  disappointment 
on  Mrs.  Farwell 's  face,  she  was  mistaken.  In- 
stead she  laughed  delightedly. 

"Really,  Polly,  that's  most  too  good  to  be  true." 

"Candles  to  take  up  to  bed  with  you!"  Lois 
exclaimed.  "It's  like  the  English  stories  you 
read  about.  Fancy  going  upstairs  holding  a 
candle  above  your  head;  won't  that  tickle  Betty?" 

Polly  drew  a  long  breath  of  relief. 

"I'm  glad  you  don't  mind,"  she  said,  doubt  in 


Off  for  the  Summer  15 


her  voice.  Then  she  added,  impulsively:  "Oh, 
I  do  hope  you  will  like  it  all." 

"Darling  child,  if  the  rest  of  the  house  goes 
with  the  candles,  we  are  sure  to,"  Mrs.  Farwell 
promised. 

And  Lois  said:  "Don't  be  such  a  great  silly, 
Poll,  cheer  up,  and  let's  talk  some  more  about  the 
house  party. 

The  topic  was  absorbing  and  the  trip  a  short 
one.  Before  they  realized  it  the  train  was  steam- 
ing up  to  the  little  village  station.  Polly,  her  con- 
fidence regained,  jumped  up  excitedly. 

"We're  here,  and  there's  Tim,"  she  exclaimed. 

With  the  aid  of  the  brakeman,  they  got  them- 
selves and  their  bags  on  to  the  platform. 

"Hello,  Tim,"  Polly  called,  as  the  old  coach- 
man came  forward;  "I  am  glad  to  see  you." 

"It's  more  than  glad  I  am  to  see  you,  Miss 
Polly,"  he  replied,  heartily  shaking  her  out- 
stretched hand;  "I've  got  the  carriage  for  you, 
and  the  farm  wagon  for  the  trunks,  as  Mr.  Pendle- 
ton wired." 

As  he  spoke  a  big  cream  colored  collie  dog 
bounded  out  from  under  the  carriage,  and  jumped 
up  on  Polly,  barking  and  wagging  his  tail. 

"Sandy,  you  darling,  darling,  darling,"  Polly 
cried,  dropping  to  her  knees  and  hugging  his 
shaggy  head.  "You  do  remember  me."  Her 
eyes  filled  with  tears  as  she  kissed  his  cold  nose. 


16  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


" Isn't  he  a  beauty ?"  she  demanded,  turning 
to  Lois  and  her  mother.  "Give  your  paw, 
Sandy I"  she  commanded,  and  Sandy  obeyed. 

After  Lois  and  Mrs.  Farwell  had  admired  him 
to  his  mistresses'  complete  satisfaction,  they  made 
their  way  to  the  carriage. 

The  ride  to  the  house  was  over  three  miles. 
Polly,  who  sat  beside  Tim,  with  Sandy  at  her 
feet,  pointed  out  everything  of  interest. 

' ' That's  the  Green,"  she  said,  as  they  drove 
through  the  village.  "The  old  white  church  at 
that  end  is  the  one  we  always  went  to.  The  min- 
ister's house  is  that  little  house  next  to  it,  and 
over  there,  the  white  house  that's  covered  with 
ivy,  is  where  Miss  Hemingway  lives;  she  was  a 
friend  of  Aunt  Hannah's.  How  is  she?  just  the 
same,  Tim?"  she  asked. 

Tim  chuckled  way  down  in  his  throat. 

"Yes,  Miss  Polly,  she's  just  the  same,"  he 
replied. 

Mrs.  Farwell  gazed  at  the  scene  before  her,  and 
sighed  contentedly.  "It's  like  a  painting,"  she 
whispered,  and  Lois  added: 

"Oh,  Poll,  it's  simply  ducky." 

They  drove  on,  past  the  village,  and  started 
up  the  first  of  the  two  home  hills  that  lead  to 
the  house.  When  they  reached  the  top  of  the 
first  one,  and  the  horses  had  changed  their  walk 
to  a  trot,  Polly  gave  a  surprised  cry. 


Off  for  the  Summer 


17 


"Gracious !"  she  exclaimed.  "Who's  living 
in  the  haunted  house?  Look,  the  blinds  are 
open!" 

Lois  and  Mrs.  Farwell  looked  in  the  direction 
in  which  she  pointed  and  saw  a  tumbled  down, 
brown  house,  almost  hidden  by  huge  lilac  bushes. 
The  path  up  to  the  sagging  front-door  was  a 
mass  of  weeds,  and  the  only  trees  about  the  place 
were  tall  gaunt  pines,  that  added  to  the  mysteri- 
ous desolation. 

Tim,  to  whom  Polly's  question  had  been  ad- 
dressed, scratched  his  head  thoughtfully  before 
answering. 

"There's  a  woman  and  a  young  girl  there,  Miss 
Polly,"  he  said  at  last;  "leastwise  as  far  as  I 
can  make  out.  Nobody  knows  where  they  came 
from  or  what's  their  business  here.  They  keeps 
to  themselves,  and  none  of  the  village  folks  will 
go  near  the  place." 

Lois  had  been  listening  eagerly. 

"How  thrilling;  is  the  house  really  haunted? 
Tell  me  about  it,"  she  demanded. 

"There's  nothing  to  tell,"  Polly  answered. 
"The  house  hasn't  been  lived  in  for  years,  and 
the  people  in  the  village  always  said  it  was 
haunted  by  ghosts." 

"Well,  go  on,"  prompted  Lois. 

"Oh,  I've  forgotten  the  story.  But  Sarah 
knows  it;  we'll  get  her  to  tell  us  sometime." 


18  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


Both  girls  looked  back  wonderingly  at  the  old 
place  and  did  not  notice  that  the  carriage  had 
rounded  the  last  turn  of  the  road,  discovering  an 
old  colonial  house  that  rambled  hugely  up  the  side 
of  a  hill. 

"How  beautiful!"  ejaculated  Mrs.  Farwell. 
"Whose  place  is  that,  Polly?" 

Polly  looked  and  laughed.  "Ours,"  she  an- 
swered. 

Two  hours  later  found  them  seated  comfortably 
in  wicker  chairs  on  the  brick  terrace,  drinking 
lemonade  and  eating  Sarah's  famous  cookies. 

Sarah  was  Tim's  wife,  and  had  been  in  the 
Pendletons'  service  as  long  as  Polly  could  remem- 
ber. She  acted  as  housekeeper,  and  took  the  most 
lively  interest  in  all  the  family. 

Mrs.  Farwell  and  Lois  had  been  shown  over 
the  house  and  had  pronounced  it  perfect.  Mrs. 
Farwell  had  gone  into  ecstasies  over  the  old  furni- 
ture that  filled  each  one  of  the  big,  cool  rooms. 

Polly's  face  was  wreathed  in  smiles.  "Oh, 
but  I'm  glad  you  like  it,"  she  sighed. 

Mrs.  Farwell  patted  her  hand.  "I  never  ex- 
pected anything  so  lovely.  I  foresee  a  wonder- 
ful summer.  It 's  going  to  be  so  nice,  having  two 
big  daughters  all  to  myself,"  she  said. 

Polly  kissed  her  and  whispered  "Thank  you." 

Lois,  who  had  been  out  of  the  conversation 
long  enough,  asked : 


Off  for  the  Summer  19 


"By  the  way,  Polly,  where 's  the  water ?" 

"Just  over  the  hill,  and  down,"  Polly  told  her. 
"We'll  walk  to  it  after  dinner,  with  the  dogs," 
she  added,  patting  Sandy  who  was  close  beside 
her  chair. 

But  the  evening  brought  a  shower  of  rain  that 
made  the  walk  impossible. 

Mrs.  Farwell  busied  herself  unpacking  the 
trunks,  and  the  girls,  after  she  had  assured  them 
they  could  be  of  no  assistance,  roamed  over  the 
house. 

"I  adore  this  landing,  and  this  comfy  window 
seat,"  Lois  remarked,  snuggling  into  the  many 
soft  cushions.  "I  hope  it  rains  often,  so  I  can 
sit  here  and  read.  I  suppose  you've  done  it 
millions  of  times." 

Polly  shook  her  head.  "No,  Aunt  Hannah 
didn't  think  it  was  very  lady-like  to  take  your 
feet  off  the  floor,  except  when  you  were  in  bed." 
She  laughed.  "But,  of  course,  I  have  curled 
up  there  many  a  time,  and  so  has  Sandy; 
haven't  we,  old  fellow?  There  or  out  in  the  hay 
loft." 

"I'm  crazy  to  explore  the  barn." 
"We  will  to-morrow." 

"Oh,  let's  get  Sarah  to  tell  us  the  story  of  the 
haunted  house,"  Lois  suggested. 

They  found  Sarah  alone  in  the  kitchen  and 
only  too  willing  to  oblige  them  with  the  tale. 


20  Polly's  Slimmer  Vacation 

"Of  course,"  she  began,  "I  don't  hold  with  this 
myself,  though  there's  many  that  do,  and  I  will 
omit"  (Sarah  meant  admit,  but  she  was  too  carried 
away  with  her  story  to  be  particular)  ' '  that  there 's 
many  the  strange  sights  I've  seen  there  at  the 
full  of  the  moon." 

"Oh,"  whispered  Lois. 

"But  to  the  story,  this  is  what  they  say:  Once 
upon  a  time,  well,  during  the  Revolution,  an  old 
man  named  Jonathan  lived  in  a  house  on  the 
same  spot  where  the  haunted  house  stands.  He 
had  a  lot  of  money  and  was  a  regular  miser,  and 
when  the  war  broke  out  he  was  afraid  lest  he 
lose  it.  So  he  went  down  in  the  cellar  and  dug 
a  hole  and  put  it  all  there.  Did  I  tell  you  he 
lived  alone?" 

"No,"  chorused  Polly  and  Lois. 

"Well,  he  did,  and  every  day  he'd  go  down 
cellar  and  look  at  his  gold.  But  one  day  the  sol- 
diers came.  There  was  always  fighting  about 
these  parts.  And  they  made  him  give  them  food 
and  beds  to  sleep  in.  They  slept  in  his  house, 
oh,  about  eight  of  them,  for  a  week  or  more.  And 
on  the  last  night  the  old  man  had  a  dream.  He 
dreamt  his  gold  was  stolen,  and  nothing  would 
do  but  that  he  must  get  up  and  go  down  cellar 
to  find  out.  On  the  way  down  he  fell  over  a 
chair,  and  one  of  the  soldiers  who  was  in  the 
next  room,  woke  up.    He  thought  maybe  there 'd 


Off  for  the  Summer 


21 


be  something  wrong,  so  up  he  gets  and  follows 
the  old  man  down  cellar  and  sees  him  looking  at 
his  gold." 

She  stopped  to  let  the  weight  of  her  words  sink 
in. 

" Go  on, ' '  pleaded  Lois.    ' 6  What  did  he  do?" 

"Oh,  he  was  a  cute  one.  The  next  day,  when 
the  other  soldiers  left,  he  stayed  behind,  unbe- 
knownst of  course  to  Jonathan,  and  that  night 
he  goes  into  the  cellar  by  a  window  to  get  the 
gold  quietly.  But  when  he  got  in,  there  is  Jona- 
than looking  at  his  gold.  He'd  had  another 
dream.  Well,  the  soldier  was  bound  to  get  that 
gold,  so  when  Jonathan  calls  help,  he  just  takes 
out  his  sword  and  kills  him.  Then  he  goes  for 
the  gold,  but  on  his  way  he  trips,  and  the  candle 
he's  holding  drops  out  of  his  hand  and  sets  fire 
to  one  of  the  wooden  posts  that  holds  up  the  house, 
and  before  he  can  get  the  gold  or  out  of  the 
house,  it's  in  a  blaze,  and  he  and  the  man  he 
killed  were  burned  up  together." 

"Bat  the  gold,"  insisted  Lois. 

"It's  still  there,  they  say,  though  none  has  been 
able  to  find  it,  but  every  month,  when  the  moon's 
full,  the  two  men  come  back  and  fight  for  it  on 
the  spot  where  the  old  house  once  stood." 

Lois  looked  hard  at  the  fire  in  the  stove.  She 
half  believed  the  strange  tale,  and  would  willingly 
have  wholly  believed. 


22  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

Polly's  practical  question,  however,  made  that 
impossible. 

"If  they  were  both  burned  up,  who  knew  and 
could  have  told  what  happened  V9  she  asked. 

"Let  that  be  as  it  may,"  Sarah  replied,  non- 
committally.  "Some  one  must  have  known,  or 
the  story  never  would  have  got  its  start." 

"Oh,  Poll,  you  make  me  cross.  Don't  spoil  it 
all  with  questions.  Thank  you,  Sarah;  I  enjoyed 
hearing  it  a  lot,  and  I'm  going  to  see  those 
ghosts,"  Lois  said,  getting  up  and  stretching. 
"Come  on  to  bed,  Polly,  I'm  crazy  to  light  my 
candle;  remember,  mine's  the  twisted  one." 

They  left  Sarah  dozing  before  the  fire,  and  went 
upstairs,  holding  their  candles  high  above  their 
heads,  much  to  Lois'  joy. 

Polly  had  her  old  room,  and  Lois  the  one  next 
to  it.  There  was  a  big  door  between  the  two. 
Mrs.  Farwell  was  just  across  the  hall. 

Undressing  took  a  long  time,  for  Lois  wanted 
to  put  off  blowing  out  her  candle,  and  insisted 
upon  retailing  Sarah's  story  to  her  mother.  It 
was  after  eleven  before  the  lights  were  out. 

Polly,  in  her  big  four-poster  bed  with  its  blue 
and  white  chintz  hangings,  lay  staring  at  the  ceil- 
ing. She  was  thinking  of  the  last  time  she  had 
slept  in  that  room.  It  had  been  the  night  after 
Aunt  Hannah's  funeral,  and  Uncle  Eoddy  had 
slept  in  Lois'  room.    She  had  lain  awake  half 


Off  for  the  Summer 


23 


the  night,  wondering  about  the  big  change  that 
to-morrow  was  to  bring.  Her  thoughts  flew  to 
Uncle  Roddy  and  the  New  York  apartment,  the 
jolly  Christmas  vacation  that  Lois  had  spent  with 
her,  school,  and  the  many  happy  memories  con- 
nected with  it.    She  sat  up  in  bed. 

"I'd  think  it  was  all  a  dream,  if  it  wasn't  for 
Lois  in  the  next  room,"  she  whispered  to  herself. 
"Lo,"  she  called  softly.  But  Lois,  under  her 
pink  and  white  patchwork  quilt,  was  sound  asleep 
and  did  not  answer.  Instead,  Sandy  got  up  from 
his  rug  by  the  window,  and  came  over  and  licked 
her  hand. 


CHAPTER  II 


BANKER  FORDS  THE  CREEK 

Polly  was  up  and  out  next  morning  before  any 
of  the  rest  of  the  household. 

With  the  collie  at  her  heels,  she  slipped  out 
of  the  side  door  and  made  directly  for  the  stables. 
There,  she  found  Tim,  cleaning  some  already  spot- 
less harness.  He  looked  up  in  surprise  at  her 
appearance. 

"Why,  Miss  Polly,  you're  up  early,' '  he  said. 

"I  know  it,"  Polly  answered.  "I  couldn't 
sleep,  and  besides,  I  didn't  have  half  enough  time 
to  really  see  things  last  night.  Tell  me  every- 
thing that's  happened  while  I  have  been  away," 
she  demanded,  swinging  herself  up  on  an  old  dis- 
used grain  box  that  did  duty  as  a  table. 

Tim  smiled  broadly.  Polly  had  always  been 
a  great  pet  of  his.  He  had  feared  that  the  city 
would  send  her  back  changed,  and  most  dreaded 
of  all,  grown  up.  But,  here  she  was,  quite  the 
same  jolly  little  companion  of  former  years. 

"Nothing  much  has  happened;  things  have 
gone  on  just  the  same,"  he  told  her.  "Darby's 
still  so  scared  of  those  autos."    Tim  always  spoke 

24 


Banker  Fords  the  Creek  25 


of  automobiles  with  disgust.  "And  Joan  fell 
down  last  winter  and  cut  her  knee,  so's  we  couldn't 
drive  her  for  weeks." 

Darby  and  Joan  were  the  team  of  horses  that 
had  brought  them  up  from  the  station,  two  mag- 
nificent blacks  that  had  long  been  the  pride  of 
Aunt  Hannah. 

Polly  slipped  down  from  her  place  and  went  into 
the  big  box  stall.  Joan  took  her  head  out  of  the 
oat  bin  and  submitted  her  velvety  nose  to  be 
petted. 

"Poor  old  Joan!  Did  she  fall  and  cut  her  knee 
and  have  to  stay  shut  up  in  the  old  stable?  Too 
bad,"  Polly  said  consolingly. 

Tim  finished  his  harness  cleaning  and  stepped 
to  the  back  of  the  stable.  Opening  a  small  door 
he  whistled  softly.  Two  big  black  and  white  set- 
ter dogs  tumbled  over  each  other  in  their  attempt 
to  greet  Polly.  They  jumped  up,  licking  her 
hands  and  barking  a  welcome. 

"Hello,  old  fellows;  here,  get  down  this  minute, 
where  are  your  manners!"  Polly  ordered,  patting 
both  their  big  heads,  as  they  stood  obediently 
beside  her. 

"They  remember  you,  too,  Miss  Polly,"  Tim 
chuckled;  "I  knew  they  would.  See  how  jealous 
Sandy  is,"  he  added. 

It  took  a  few  minutes  of  loving  and  petting 
before  the  collie  would  stop  sulking,  and  then, 


26  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

with  all  three  dogs  frisking  about  her,  Polly  fin- 
ished her  inspection  of  the  stable. 

Darby  received  his  share  of  attention,  and  even 
old  Frank,  the  farm  horse,  seemed  to  remember 
the  fingers  that  stroked  his  neck. 

Finally  Polly  stopped  in  the  middle  of  the  barn, 
her  head  was  a  little  on  one  side.  She  gave  an 
excited  little  sigh  as  she  said : 

"And  now  to  get  a  real  look  at  Banker;  I 
just  saw  him  last  night." 

"Yes,  Miss,  just  a  minute  and  I'll  catch  him 
for  you."  Tim  was  as  excited  as  his  little  mis- 
tress. 

"No,  don't  do  that;  I'll  go  myself  and  see  if 
he  knows  me,"  Polly  said. 

She  started  off  across  the  lawn  to  a  small  pas- 
ture where  Banker,  the  old  dappled  gray  pony, 
reigned  supreme.  She  found  him  grazing  con- 
tentedly in  one  corner. 

Tim  watched  breathlessly  from  the  stable  door. 
Not  for  worlds  would  he  have  admitted  the  fear 
of  the  pony's  not  remembering  Polly.  Still,  it 
was  almost  a  year  and  the  poor  fellow  was  get- 
ting old.  But  he  had  faith — Miss  Polly  was  a 
wonderful  hand  with  all  animals. 

As  she  entered  the  pasture,  he  saw  that  his 
faith  was  justified,  for,  at  the  sound  of  his  mis- 
tress's voice  Banker  gave  a  surprised  whinny 
and  trotted  over  to  her.    In  a  minute  his  pink 


Pollv  slipped  the  halter  over  his  head  and  led  him 
back  to  the  stable.  Pagfe  27 


Banker  Fords  the  Creek 


27 


nose  was  muzzling  her  shoulder.  Polly  slipped 
the  halter  over  his  head  and  led  him  back  to  the 
stable. 

"Here  he  is,  Tim/'  she  cried.  "You'd  better 
keep  him  in  the  stable.  We  '11  probably  want  him 
to-day.    Is  the  basket  cart  all  right!" 

"It  is  sure,  Miss  Polly;  it's  just  had  a  fresh 
coat  of  paint  last  week,  and  looks  as  good  as 
new.  It  only  came  back  two  days  ago  from  Mr. 
Simkins." 

"Oh,  that's  great.  Will  you  hitch  up  Banker 
and  bring  him  around  to  the  house  this  after- 
noon; please,  Tim?  I  can't  wait  to  drive  to  the 
village.  Mercy!  It  must  be  breakfast  time," 
she  exclaimed  suddenly,  conscious  of  the  stable 
clock.  "Keep  Jack  and  Jill  here  and  I'll  take 
Sandy  with  me,"  she  directed.  Tim  stood  watch- 
ing her  as  she  ran  to  the  house.  "She's  the 
same,"  he  mused,  "only  different;  she's  getting 
more  like  her  mother  every  day." 

On  her  way  back,  Polly  met  Lois  half  way 
across  the  lawn. 

"Why,  Poll,  I  thought  you'd  completely  disap- 
peared.   What  unearthly  hour  did  you  get  up?" 

"After  six,  sometime.  I  peeked  in  at  you,  but 
you  were  sleeping  so  soundly  I  didn't  like  to 
wake  you." 

They  linked  arms  and  entered  the  dining-room 
by  one  of  the  long  French  windows. 


28  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


Mrs.  Farwell  was  already  there,  dressed  in  a 
soft  creamy  morning  dress.  She  was  standing, 
looking  intently  at  a  painting  that  hung  at  one 
end  of  the  long  room.  It  was  a  portrait  of  a 
very  beautiful  girl. 

' 6 Who  is  this,  Polly  dear,"  she  asked,  as  the 
girls  came  in. 

"My  mother,"  Polly  answered  softly. 

"She  was  very  beautiful." 

"Uncle  Eoddy  says  she  was.  I  don't  remem- 
ber her.    I  was  only  a  year  old  when  she  died." 

"And  your  father?" 

"He  died  a  year  later.  I  was  always  with 
Aunt  Hannah  after  that. ' ' 

Polly's  voice  was  very  quiet,  and  she  sighed 
ever  so  slightly. 

Mrs.  Farwell  felt  a  lump  rise  in  her  throat. 
She  put  her  arm  around  Polly  and  kissed  her. 

"I  think  you  are  going  to  be  very  like  your 
beautiful  mother,  dear,"  she  said. 

Lois  caught  the  tremor  in  her  mother's  voice 
and  called  out  cheerfully: 

"Oh,  come  on  to  breakfast,  I'm  awfully  hungry. 
This  air  gives  me  a  whooping  appetite." 

They  seated  themselves  at  the  round  mahogany 
table  and  ate  heartily  of  everything  Sarah  had 
provided. 

"What  are  we  going  to  do  to-day!"  Lois  asked 


Banker  Fords  the  Creek  29 


as  she  waited  for  her  mother  to  pour  her  a  second 
cup  of  chocolate. 

Polly  brightened  up.  She  had  been  rather  quiet 
through  the  meal. 

"I've  ordered  Banker  to  be  brought  around  for 
this  afternoon;  we  might  go  for  a  ride.  You  see 
it's  too  cold  to  bathe,  and  there's  not  much  else 
to  do." 

"What  could  we  possibly  do  that  would  be  more 
fun?  We'll  drive  all  over  this  blessed  village  and 
explore  it,"  Lois  answered. 

For  the  rest  of  the  morning  they  helped  Mrs. 
Farwell  finish  unpacking,  and  at  two  o'clock  Tim 
led  Banker,  hitched  to  the  newly  painted  cart, 
around  to  the  carriage  block,  and  stood  at  his  head 
until  Lois  and  Polly,  both  in  spick  and  span  linen 
sailor  suits,  jumped  in.  Polly  took  the  reins, 
spoke  to  Banker,  who  pricked  up  his  ears  and 
started  up  the  hill  at  a  jogging  trot. 

"Oh,  Poll,  this  is  fun.  Where  are  we  going 
first?"  Lois  asked  as  they  left  the  driveway  and 
headed  in  the  opposite  direction  from  the  village. 

"Down  to  the  beach;  there's  a  sort  of  a  road 
that  runs  along  the  water  and  around  to  the 
village.  If  it's  high  tide  we'll  have  to  ford  the 
creek.   But  Banker's  used  to  that." 

"I  hope  it  is  high  tide,"  Lois  said;  "I  never 
forded  a  stream  in  my  life." 


30  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


6 i  Do  you  remember  the  day  we  went  in  pad- 
dling at  school  and  Bet  found  the  monkey  ?" 

"I  guess  I  do.  I'll  never  forget  it.  By  the 
way,  when  will  we  ask  Betty  up?" 

' i  When  is  Bob  coming  ?" 

"I'm  not  sure.  Not  before  the  first  of  July 
anyway." 

"Well,  that's  not  so  very  far  away;  let's  wait 
and  have  Betty  then." 

They  reached  the  summit  of  the  hill  and  the 
water  was  visible  for  the  first  time.  Lois,  how- 
ever, appeared  not  to  notice  it.  She  had  become 
very  serious. 

"Polly,"  she  said  suddenly. 

"Yes." 

"You  do  like  Bob,  don't  you?" 

"Of  course  I  do.  What  a  silly  question. 
What  made  you  ask  it?" 

"Nothing,  only  do  you  remember  the  day 
Mother  and  Dad  and  he  came  up  to  school?" 

"Yes." 

"Well,  you  raved  about  Mother  and  Dad,  but 
you  wouldn't  say  anything  about  Bob,  and  I 
thought — " 

Lois  left  her  sentence  unfinished. 

Polly  looked  intently  at  Banker's  ears;  she  was 
embarrassed.  All  her  life  she  had  kept  her  feel- 
ings to  herself  and  she  found  confidences  difficult. 


Banker  Fords  the  Creek  31 


"I'll  tell  you  what  I  think,"  she  said  suddenly. 
"I  think  Bob's  the  nicest  boy  I  ever  met.  There, 
now  are  you  satisfied?  " 

Lois  was  about  to  express  her  delight  when 
she  saw  the  water  ahead. 

"Oh,  Polly,  how  beautiful!"  she  exclaimed. 
"I  never  saw  anything  as  blue  as  that  water.  It 
actually  sparkles.  And  look  at  the  way  the  trees 
go  right  down  to  the  edge.  I  thought  it  was  a 
regular  sandy  beach.    Where's  the  creek!" 

"Straight  ahead.  It's  really  more  of  an  inlet 
than  a  creek." 

Polly  stood  up  in  the  cart.  "Jemima!  but  the 
tide  is  high." 

"Then  we'll  have  to  ford  it!" 

"It  looks  that  way." 

They  drove  the  remaining  distance  to  the  creek 
and  stopped.  Polly  got  out  with  the  whip,  and 
measured  the  depth. 

"It's  pretty  high,  but  I  guess  Banker  can  make 
it.  Come  on,  old  fellow,"  she  coaxed,  leading  the 
pony  to  the  edge  of  the  bank,  and  then  taking  her 
seat  again  in  the  cart. 

Lois  looked  a  little  dubious;  she  was  not  a 
country  girl. 

"Is  it  safe,  Poll?"  she  asked,  breathlessly. 

"We  can't  get  worse  than  a  ducking,"  Polly 
replied,  laughing  and  picking  up  the  reins. 


32  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


Banker  looked  suspiciously  at  the  water  and 
put  one  of  his  fore  feet  in,  then  he  hesitated. 
Polly  shortened  her  hold  on  the  reins. 

"It's  all  right,  Banker;  I  won't  let  you  slip." 

In  went  the  other  foot  and  Banker  decided  to 
slide  the  rest  of  the  way.  He  sent  the  water  in 
showers  as  he  scrambled  to  regain  his  footing. 
The  cart  followed  with  a  sudden  bump  and  Lois 
screamed. 

"Polly,  it's  coming  over  the  sides. " 

"No,  it  isn't,  it's  only  as  high  as  the  step. 
We're  all  right,  now,  don't  be  frightened,"  she 
said  soothingly.  But  Banker  waded  in  deeper 
at  every  step.  The  water  was  as  high  as  the 
shafts.  They  were  progressing  steadily,  how- 
ever, and  Polly  saw  no  reason  to  be  worried. 

Suddenly  the  cart  gave  a  lurch,  the  wheels  sank 
deep  in  the  mud  with  a  squashy  gurgling  sound 
and  Banker,  surprised  in  his  attempt  to  gain  a 
footing  on  the  opposite  bank,  came  to  an  abrupt 
halt. 

The  two  girls  looked  at  each  other,  Lois  was  now 
thoroughly  frightened ;  but  Polly,  though  alive  to 
the  danger,  rather  enjoyed  it. 

<  <  We  're  stuck, ' '  they  both  said  at  once. 

After  several  minutes  spent  in  coaxing  on 
Polly's  part,  and  useless  straining  attempts  on 
the  pony's,  the  wheel  on  Lois'  side  gave  a  dreadful 
crack.    Startled  by  the  unexpected  noise,  Banker 


Banker  Fords  the  Creek 


33 


gave  a  sudden  jump  and  scrambled  to  dry  ground. 

Polly  was  out  of  the  cart  and  at  his  head  in 
a  jiffy. 

"You  plucky  old  fellow,"  she  said.  "Will  you 
ever  forgive  me!  Look  Lo,  he's  trembling  all 
over. ' ' 

Lois  was  in  exactly  the  same  state  herself,  but 
not  for  worlds  would  she  have  confessed  it.  She 
was  determined  to  imitate  Polly's  fearlessness, 
and  this  was  a  good  opportunity  to  begin. 

"He's  a  wonder,"  she  said.  "What  ought  we 
to  do;  we  can't  drive  him,  can  we?" 

"Goodness,  no.  I'll  unhitch  him  and  lead  him 
over  to  the  Tomkins'.  We  get  our  milk  from 
them.  Their  house  is  just  a  little  way  from  here. 
Mr.  Tomkins  will  rub  him  down  and  let  him  rest 
in  his  barn.  We  can  leave  the  cart  here.  Tim 
will  come  for  it." 

Half  an  hour  later,  with  the  knowledge  that 
Banker  was  comfortable,  the  girls  felt  free  to 
accept  Mrs.  Tomkins'  invitation  to  "step  in  and 
have  a  bite  to  eat." 

Lois  was  delighted  at  the  idea  of  entering  this 
queer  group  of  low  white  buildings,  so  different 
in  shape  but  all  apparently  connected. 

"Polly,  I  don't  understand  this  at  all,"  she 
whispered,  as  they  stood  on  the  small  front  porch 
waiting  for  Mrs.  Tomkins  to  open  the  door.  "Is 
this  all  house?" 


34  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


Polly  laughed  heartily. 

"It's  house,  barn,  dairy,  chicken  coop,  every- 
thing/' she  explained.  "All  the  farm  houses  are 
built  like  this;  it  is  so  cold  in  winter  and  there's 
so  much  snow  that  sometimes  you  can't  get  out 
for  days." 

"Really,  Polly,  how  funny,  everything  is  so  dif- 
ferent up  here.  I  love  it.  Tell  me,  why  couldn't 
we  have  gone  in  the  other  way  with  Mrs. 
Tomkins?" 

"Because  we're  company,  and  besides  Mrs. 
Tomkins  is  very  proud  of  her  front  hall  and  par- 
lor. She  doesn't  have  visitors  often,  and  when 
she  does,  she's  very  serious  about  them." 

"She's  a  darling,"  Lois  said,  decidedly. 

They  heard  the  grating  sound  that  a  key  makes 
in  a  lock  that  is  seldom  used,  and  then  Mrs.  Tom- 
kins,  her  big  blue  and  white  apron  removed,  her 
hair  tidied,  and  her  broad  good-natured  face 
smiling  a  welcome,  ushered  them  into  the  par- 
lor. 

The  room  smelled  musty  and  old,  the  shades 
were  lowered,  and  everything  was  in  that  spotless 
order  peculiar  to  unused  rooms. 

They  all  sat  down  on  horse-hair  chairs:  Lois 
beside  the  quaint  barrel-shaped  stove,  Polly  under 
the  crayon  portrait  of  great-grandfather  Tom- 
kins,  and  Mrs.  Tomkins  near  the  door,  where  she 
could  command  a  view  of  the  kitchen.    The  easy 


Banker  Fords  the  Creek  35 


intimacy  of  the  barn  was  lost  in  this  prim  room. 
Mrs.  Tomkins  asked  polite  questions  and  Polly 
and  Lois  answered  them. 

At  last,  Sally,  the  hired  girl,  looking  flushed 
and  hurried,  came  in  bearing  a  huge  black  tray, 
decorated  with  painted  flowers.  On  it  were  three 
dark  blue  glasses,  a  large  plate  of  bread  and 
butter,  a  jar  of  jelly,  two  pitchers  of  milk  and  a 
heaping  bowl  of  pot  cheese. 

It  was  not  until  the  sight  of  this  appetizing 
food  that  the  girls  realized  how  really  hungry 
they  were. 

"Oh,  Mrs.  Tomkins,  this  does  look  good,"  ex- 
claimed Polly,  forgetting  she  was  company. 
"I'm  simply  starved!" 

"Well,  now,  just  start  right  in,  then.  This 
pitcher's  buttermilk  and  that's  plain.  "Which '11 
you  have,  Miss  Lois?  I  know  Miss  Polly  likes 
the  butter  best,"  Mrs.  Tomkins  said,  as  she  busied 
herself  about  the  tray. 

"You  bet  I  do.    Try  it,  Lo,"  Polly  suggested. 

"No,  thanks,  I'll  stick  to  plain.  I  tried  butter- 
milk once,  but  I  didn't  like  it."  Lois  had  all 
she  could  do  not  to  make  a  face. 

They  all  laughed  heartily  at  this  and  the  little 
reserve  that  was  left  completely  vanished. 

Mrs.  Tomkins  asked  a  hundred  questions  about 
New  York  and  boarding  school  and  Lois  and  Polly 
interrupted  each  other  in  their  eagerness  to  an- 


36  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


swer.  When  it  was  time  to  go  Lois  was  almost  on 
the  same  footing  with  Polly. 

"I've  had  a  perfectly  wonderful  time,"  she 
said  as  they  lingered  at  the  door.  "And  I  think 
your  house  is  beautiful." 

"Lois  has  never  seen  a  house  like  this  before," 
Polly  said,  "where  all  the  buildings  are  joined 
together. ' ' 

1 6  Maybe  she 'd  like  to  go  to  the  dairy  at  milking 
time  some  day,"  Mrs.  Tomkins  suggested. 

"Oh,  would  you  let  me?  I'd  just  adore  it. 
When  may  I  come?"   Lois  was  really  delighted. 

"Any  time  you  like.   We  milk  at  five." 

"Thanks,  ever  so  much.  It  will  be  soon,  I  can 
promise  you.    Good  night." 

"Good  night." 

They  waved  until  they  had  turned  the  bend  of 
the  road  and  the  farm  house  was  lost  to  view. 

"Well,  you  have  made  a  hit,  Lo,"  Polly  re- 
marked. "Mrs.  Tomkins  doesn't  ask  everybody 
to  go  through  the  dairy.  She's  rather  a  crank 
about  it,  in  fact." 

"Honestly?  I'm  awfully  glad.  I  think  she's  a 
dear.    Can't  we  go  soon?" 

"Yes,  but  let's  wait  until  we're  sure  it's  low 
tide." 

At  ihe  word  tide  they  both  stopped  in  the  mid- 
dle of  the  road.  For  almost  an  hour  they  had 
forgotten  their  experience,  but  now  it  came  back 


* 


Banker  Fords  the  Creek  37 


vividly  to  them.  Polly  began  to  laugh  and  after 
a  minute  Lois  joined  in. 

"If  you  could  have  seen  your  face,"  Polly 
gasped.  "I  thought  we  were  going  to  be 
swamped.  Poor  tired  old  Banker,  he  was  a 
sport." 

"And  the  cart's  such  a  wreck." 

"It's  just  been  painted.   Wait  till  Tim  sees  it." 

"Oh,  but  it  was  funny." 

They  entered  the  pasture  at  the  back  of  the 
barn.  They  had  come  up  the  short  cut  through 
the  woods. 

"This  is  a  nice  way  to  come  back  after  the 
style  we  left  in,"  laughed  Lois.  "Mother  will 
die  laughing  when  she  hears." 

"Don't  you  dare  tell  her  till  I  come  in," 
warned  Polly.  "I'm  going  to  the  barn  and  tell 
Tim  to  call  for  Banker." 

"All  right,  hurry  up  though." 

They  separated.    Suddenly  Polly  called: 

"Lo,  half  a  minute." 

"Yes." 

"About  Bob."   Polly's  cheeks  were  burning. 
"Well?" 

"I'd  rather  he  didn't  know  what  I  told  you." 

When  Lois  recovered  from  her  surprise  and 
turned  to  answer,  Polly  was  already  half  v^y  to 
the  barn. 


CHAPTER  HI 


THE  FIRST  CALL 

It  was  the  first  day  of  real  summer  and  the 
Pendleton  grounds  gave  ample  proof  of  their 
gratitude.  In  the  pasture  the  short  stubby  grass 
looked  emerald  green  in  the  sunshine.  The  trees 
in  the  wood  rustled  joyously  as  if  they  were  extra 
proud  this  year  of  their  fine  leaves.  The  tiny 
brook  in  the  meadow  tumbled  and  sang,  glad  to 
be  freed  by  the  sun  from  the  ice  and  snow  of  the 
grim  mountain  where  it  had  been  captive  all  win- 
ter. Delicate  spring  flowers  had  sprung  up,  as  if 
by  magic,  along  the  banks. 

The  broad  velvety  lawn,  in  its  majestic  dig- 
nity, made  a  fitting  pedestal  for  the  fine  old  house 
that  seemed  to  smile  a  welcome  from  its  summit. 

In  the  summer  house,  already  covered  by  pale 
green  vines  that  gave  promise  of  crimson  ram- 
blers to  come,  Mrs.  Farwell  with  Polly  and  Lois 
were  sitting  down  to  tea,  or  to  be  strictly  honest, 
lemonade  and  cake. 

They  had  been  settled  now  for  over  a  week  and 
felt  delightfully  at  home.    To-day  being  really 

38 


The  First  Call 


39 


warm  they  were  all  in  sheerest  of  dimity  dresses 
and  disposed  to  be  just  lazy. 

Lois  was  lolling  in  a  big  birch  bark  chair. 

i c Jemima,  it's  hot;  weVe  been  lying  around  all 
day  without  doing  a  blessed  thing,"  she  said, 
yawning. 

Mrs.  FarwelPs  eyebrows  drew  together  in  a 
puzzled  frown. 

" Darling  Lois,  you  do  use  the  most  dreadful 
language,"  she  complained.  "You  say  Jemima 
every  minute.    Where  did  you  learn  it?" 

"Never  mind,  Mumsie  dear,  it's  too  hot  to  re- 
form to-day,"  Lois  answered.  "Besides,  I  don't 
know  who  taught  me  Jemima." 

Polly  laughed. 

"I  do.    Betty,  don't  you  remember?" 
"Of  course." 

"She  uses  it  when  she  is  mildly  excited,  but 
when  she  is  really  thrilled  she  says  Lordy ! ' ' 

"Betty  must  be  a  great  girl.  When  is  she  com- 
ing to  visit  you?"  asked  Mrs.  Farwell. 

"I  wrote  her  yesterday  to  let  me  know  when 
she  would  be  able  to.  I  hope  it's  soon,  she's  such 
fun." 

"Mother,  you  met  her  at  commencement;  the 
girl  with  the  freckles  and  snub  nose,"  Lois  inter- 
rupted. 

"Oh,  was  that  Betty?  I  remember  her  of 
course,  but  tell  me  something  more  about  her.'-* 


40  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


6  6  All  right,  but  fill  up  my  glass  first,  and,  Polly, 
throw  me  a  pillow;  this  chair  is  as  hard  as 
rocks." 

Polly  threw  the  pillow  just  as  Mrs.  Farwell 
lifted  the  big  silver  pitcher  and  the  two  met  with 
disastrous  results.  After  the  damage  had  been 
repaired,  the  cushion  placed  in  the  sun  to  dry,  the 
broken  glass  substituted  by  another,  they  began 
their  description. 

i t First  of  all,"  said  Lois.  " Betty's  a  real 
sport." 

" She's  not  afraid  of  anything,"  added  Polly. 

"She  plays  basket  ball  like  a  streak." 

"All  the  girls  adore  her." 

"She  writes  the  best  composition  in  class. 
Uncle  Eoddy  thinks  she's  wonderful." 

"How  do  the  teachers  like  her!"  Mrs.  Farwell 
asked  at  this  point. 

"They're  crazy  about  her;  that  is,  all  except 
the  Spartan." 

Lois  showed  her  contempt  for  the  Latin  teacher 
at  Seddon  Hall  by  the  disgust  of  her  tones. 

"The  Spartan  doesn't  like  anybody  very  much, 
and  of  course  after  she  found  out  it  was  Bet  who'd 
given  her  her  nickname,  well,  it  didn't  help,"  Polly 
finished  lamely. 

"But  Mrs.  Baird  is  awfully  fond  of  her,"  Lois 
defended,  "especially  since  the  day  she  fell  in  the 
river." 


The  First  Call 


41 


"Who?  Mrs.  Baird?"  Mrs.  Farwell  was  as- 
tonished. 

"No,  Betty.    I  wrote  you  about  it,  Mother.  It 

was  the  day  we  all  went  skating,  and  Bet  fell  in 
and  the  red-headed  boy  from  the  military  school, 
you  know,  Bob  has  some  friends  there,  I've  for- 
gotten the  name,  rescued  her." 

i '  Oh,  Lo,  will  you  ever  forget  that  daw? ' '  Polly 
took  up  the  story  without  giving  Mrs.  Farwell  a 
chance  to  speak.  "He  was  bully,  wasn't  he? 
How  he  ordered  us  around,  and  Bet  was  so  brave, 
she  kept  up  her  courage  and  never  murmured. 
She  lost  consciousness  of  course  afterwards." 

"But  the  very  first  thing  she  said  when  she  came 
to  was  funny,"  Lois  reminded  her. 

Mrs.  Farwell  looked  at  the  two  girls,  they  were 
flushed  with  excitement  at  the  memory  of  that 
eventful  day,  and  she  thought  for  the  hundredth 
time  how  glad  she  was  that  fate,  in  the  shape  of 
Seddon  Hall,  had  brought  them  together.  Her 
love  for  Lois  was  that  of  a  mother  and  comrade. 
Nothing  could  ever  equal  it,  but  Polly  had  found  a 
place  in  her  heart  that  was  growing  every  day. 

TVas  it  because  the  child  had  no  parents  that 
she  loved  her?  Perhaps,  but  the  main  reason 
was,  that  Polly  was  Polly.  Polly  with  her  gold 
brown  hair  and  eyes  that  matched  it  so  exactly, 
and  her  winning  manner,  was  apt  to  find  her  way 
into  any  heart.    What  if  Betty's  visit  should 


42  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


make  a  difference?  Would  two  of  them  pair  off 
and  leave  the  other,  Mrs.  Farwell  wondered,  not 
a  little  troubled?    Aloud  she  said: 

"I  think  Betty  must  be  quite  a  duck." 

"Mother!" 

"Mrs.  Farwell!" 

Polly  and  Lois  pretended  to  be  greatly  shocked. 

"Darling  Mumsie,  you  really  are  getting  so 
slangy,"  Lois  teased. 

Mrs.  Farwell  joined  heartily  in  the  laugh 
against  her.  "Well,  you  see  what  a  dreadful  in- 
fluence you  are,"  she  said.  "And  what  am  I  go- 
ing to  do  when  Betty  comes?  By  the  way,"  she 
added,  "won't  you  want  to  have  another  girl  when 
she's  here?    Isn't  three  rather  an  odd  number?" 

"Not  when  Bet's  the  third,"  both  girls  denied 
emphatically. 

"We  always  went  together  at  school.  They 
called  us  the  trio,"  Polly  explained. 

"Mother  thinks  we'll  fuss,"  laughed  Lois,  read- 
ing aright  the  pucker  on  Mrs.  Farwell 's  brow. 

"No  fear  of  that,"  laughed  Polly,  confidently. 

Mrs.  Farwell  sighed  her  relief  and  looked  out 
contentedly  over  the  lawn. 

The  girls  discussed  Betty's  coming. 

All  at  once  the  sound  of  carriage  wheels  on 
gravel  became  audible  and  Mrs.  Farwell,  glancing 
down  the  driveway,  saw  a  dilapidated  carriage 
moving  slowly  towards  the  house. 


The  First  CaU 


43 


"Who  can  that  be?"  she  asked,  sitting  up. 

The  girls  looked,  and  Polly  groaned : 

"It's  company,  and  I  bet  I  know  who.  Miss 
Hemingway  or  the  minister.  They  always  come 
in  the  station  carriage." 

i  4  Then  we  must  go  back  at  once.  It  would  never 
do  to  receive  our  first  visitors  anywhere  but  in  the 
drawing-room."  Mrs.  Farwell  rose  as  she  spoke, 
smoothed  out  the  wrinkles  in  her  dress  and  started 
across  the  lawn.  Lois  and  Polly  followed  de- 
jectedly. 

Sarah  met  them  as  they  entered  the  hall. 

"Miss  Hemingway  is  in  the  parlor,  Mam. 
Shall  I  bring  tea?"  she  inquired. 

Mrs.  Farwell  nodded  assent  and  entered  the 
room. 

There,  seated  in  the  exact  middle  of  the  sofa, 
her  purple  silk  dress  spread  in  billowy  folds  about 
her  tiny  person,  her  small  black  gloved  hands 
folded  primly  in  her  lap,  her  corkscrew  curls 
marshaled  like  soldiers  on  either  side  of  her  thin 
little  face,  sat  Miss  Hemingway. 

At  sight  of  her  hostess,  she  rose  and  extended 
her  hand. 

"Is  this  Mrs.  Farwell?"  she  asked  in  a  shrill, 
piping  voice.    i  1 1  am  Miss  Hemingway. ' ' 

"How  do  you  do?  I  am  delighted  to  see  you," 
Mrs.  Farwell  replied  graciously. 

Her  visitor  looked  a  trifle  puzzled. 


44  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


"Yes,  indeed,  it  is  warm  for  this  time  of  year," 
she  said,  nodding  her  head.  Then  turned  to  greet 
Polly. 

"Glad  to  see  you,  my  dear  child;  glad  to  see 
you.  So  afraid  you'd  never  come  back.  Don't 
hold  with  boarding  school  myself,  never  did. 
Still  under  circumstances —  But  who's  this?" 
She  noticed  Lois  for  the  first  time. 

Polly  explained  Lois'  presence  and  introduced 
her  in  a  voice  that  could  be  heard  by  Tim  in  the 
barn. 

Lois,  too  startled  for  speech,  shook  hands  and 
they  all  sat  down. 

Polly  seated  herself  on  a  foot  stool  as  near  their 
guest  as  possible,  and  undertook  the  conversation. 

"It's  very  natural  to  be  back,  everything  is  just 
the  same,"  she  shouted. 

Miss  Hemingway  turned  on  her  sharply. 

"Humph,  just  the  same.  Where  are  your  eyes? 
There's  plenty  of  changes.  New  porch  on  the 
Eectory;  silly  it  looks  too,  I  think.  Three  new 
stores  on  Main  Street.  Macadam  road  all  the 
way  to  the  bridge.  And  as  if  that  wasn't  enough 
changes  for  one  year,  they  must  put  up  a  band 
stand  on  the  Green.  Fussing  for  something  new 
all  the  time.  Don't  hold  with  it  myself;  don't 
hold  with  it." 

Mrs.  Farwell  thought  it  time  to  say  something, 
so  she  cleared  her  throat. 


The  First  Call 


45 


"Polly  pointed  out  your  charming  house  to  us 
as  we  drove  from  the  station.  Perhaps  you  will 
give  us  — " 

"Hey  ?  Oh,  yes.  quite  so,  quite  so,  it  is  a  pity. 
They're  talking  of  tearing  down  the  old  covered 
bridge  and  putting  up  a  steel  one."  Miss  Hem- 
ingway was  off  on  a  long  tirade  against  modern 
improvements. 

Mrs.  Farwell  sank  back  discouraged,  and  left 
the  conversation  to  her  guest.  This  seemed  to 
thoroughly  satisfy  Miss  Hemingway,  who  kept  up 
a  steady  stream  of  remarks  until  Sarah  appeared 
with  the  tea. 

Meanwhile  Lois  had  been  racking  her  brains  to 
think  of  something  to  say.  Her  thoughts  seemed 
to  have  all  taken  flight.  There  must  be  some  in- 
telligent remark  she  could  make.  All  at  once  she 
had  an  inspiration.  She  left  her  chair,  walked 
round  to  the  back  of  the  sofa,  and  putting 
her  mouth  almost  in  Miss  Hemingway's  ear 
shouted : 

"Do  you  think  Polly  has  changed?" 

Miss  Hemingway  gave  a  violent  start. 

- 'Mercy  me!"  she  exclaimed.  ""What  a  fright 
you  gave  me.  Xo  need  to  shout  in  my  ear,  child. 
I'm  not  deaf,  hear  perfectly  if  a  body  speaks  dis- 
tinctly." And  she  subsided  into  a  series  of 
humphs  and  dear  mes. 

Poor  Lois  blushed  scarlet  and  fled  for  the  big 


46  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


bay  window,  where  she  took  refuge  behind  the 
kindly  curtains. 

Mrs.  Farwell,  to  cover  up  the  awkward  pause, 
insisted  upon  giving  her  visitor  another  cup  of 
tea,  and  Polly,  to  change  the  subject,  shouted, 
though  with  every  appearance  of  speaking  in  a 
natural  voice,  "  Are  there  many  new  people  in  the 
villager' 

It  was  the  wisest  thing  she  could  have  done. 
Miss  Hemingway  had  intended  mentioning  the 
new  neighbors,  but  it  had  slipped  her  mind.  She 
was  grateful  to  Polly  for  introducing  the  subject. 

" There  are,  child,  there  are,"  she  began, 
"two  new  families  on  the  green,  though  I'm 
thankful  to  say  they  are  here  only  for  the  sum- 
mer. I  called  once,  but  shan't  again.  Very 
frivolous  the  younger  ones  are.  Silly  things. 
Then  there's  the  Kent  hous — " 

"That's  the  one  I  told  you  was  haunted,  the 
other  day,"  Polly  explained  in  an  undertone  to 
Mrs.  Farwell. 

"There  are  people  in  that,"  the  tiny  lady  went 
on,  not  knowing  of  the  interruption,  "but  I  know 
nothing  about  them.  Very  strange  behavior 
though,  I  must  say,  very  strange.  Mrs.  Hop- 
per—  " 

"The  minister's  wife,"  Polly  explained  again. 
— "called  there  and  she  told  me  they  wouldn't 
let  her  in.   I  don't  believe  that — foolish  woman, 


The  First  Call 


47 


Mrs.  Hopper,  always  exaggerating — said  some- 
thing though  about  an  English  woman  coming  to 
the  door  and  saying  the  lady  of  the  house  was 
too  ill  to  receive  callers.  Maybe  so,  nobody 
knows  anything  about  her.  There's  a  girl  too, 
daughter,  I  suppose.  About  your  age,  Polly — 
Mrs.  Hopper  said  she  was  in  the  path  as  she  came 
out,  but  when  she  spoke  to  her  she  ran  behind 
some  shrubs.  Very  rude  of  her,  I'm  sure,  but  per- 
haps she  knows  no  better.  Invalid  or  no  invalid, 
her  mother  ought  to  see  that  the  child  goes  to 
Sunday  school." 

There  was  a  moment's  pause,  during  which  the 
hall  clock  boomed  six  and  Lois,  still  hidden  in  the 
bay  window,  sneezed  violently. 

Miss  Hemingway  looked  at  her  watch,  a  large 
gold  one  with  a  double  case,  and  rose  to  go. 

"No  idea  it  was  so  late.  Must  be  going,  had 
a  delightful  afternoon."  Each  sentence  was  so 
punctuated  that  it  sounded  like  the  report  of  a 
pistol. 

"Glad  to  see  you  at  my  house  any  time.  Don't 
come  Mondays;  Church  Society  meets  that  day, 
you  wouldn't  like  it.  Good-by,  Polly,  child;  glad 
you're  back.  Never  held  with  boarding  schools. 
Where's  the  other  girl?" 

Lois  came  out  of  the  bay  window  looking  de- 
cidedly crestfallen. 

"Oh,  there  you  are.    Good-by,  my  dear,"  and 


48  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


to  the  surprise  of  all,  the  queer  little  lady  put 
her  hand  on  Lois'  shoulder  and  kissed  her. 

"Come  in  when  you're  out  in  the  pony  cart, 
any  time — good-by — good-by."  And  away  she 
bobbed,  through  the  front  hall  to  the  porch  and 
was  driven  away  in  style  in  the  station  hack. 

Her  three  hostesses  accompanied  her  as  far  as 
the  steps  and  stood  waiting  until  the  last  rattle 
of  the  carriage  faded  into  the  other  evening 
noises.  Then,  with  one  accord  they  sat  down  sud- 
denly on  the  top  step.  No  one  wanted  to  be  the 
first,  yet  they  all  wanted  to  laugh  and  felt  rather 
ashamed  of  it. 

"She's  funny,  but  she's  really  a  dear,  inside," 
Polly  said  loyally.  "She's  been  awfully  good  to 
me.  I'll  never  forget  the  day  I  fell  in  the  mud 
in  front  of  her  house,  and  she  had  my  dress 
washed  and  pressed  so  Aunt  Hannah  wouldn't 
know." 

"Was  she  a  friend  of  your  aunt's?"  Mrs.  Far- 
well  asked. 

"Yes,  that  is,  they  used  to  call  on  each  other 
quite  often.  Aunt  Hannah  never  knew  any  one 
very  well,  but  I  think  she  liked  Miss  Hemingway, 
Though  why,  I  don't  know.  They  were  so  differ- 
ent. Miss  Hemingway  talks  all  the  time,  and 
Aunt  Hannah  never  spoke  unless  she  had  some- 
thing important  to  say." 

"Well,  that  wouldn't  worry  Miss  Hemingway," 


The  First  Call 


49 


laughed  Mrs.  Farwell.  "She  really  is  a  delight- 
ful old  lady,  and  I  am  sure  she  is  lots  kinder  than 
she  pretends  to  be." 

Polly  looked  thoughtfully  down  the  road  to- 
wards the  East.  In  the  twilight  the  dilapidated, 
crazy  roof  of  the  haunted  house  was  just  visible. 
A  last  ray  of  sun  caught  one  tiny  dormer  window 
and  made  it  sparkle  vividly  against  the  back- 
ground of  darkness. 

"I  wonder  what's  the  mystery  about  the  people 
in  that  place  ? ' '  she  mused. 

"I  wonder  too,"  Mrs.  Farwell  sighed,  "it 
doesn't  sound  as  if  they  were  very  happy,  par- 
ticularly the  child.  Poor  little  thing,  she  must  be 
very  lonely."  Then,  noticing  Lois,  who  looked 
positively  crushed,  in  one  of  the  porch  chairs,  she 
asked,  "What  do  you  think,  dear!" 

"Think!  I'll  never  think  again,"  said  Lois, 
solemnly.  "It  was  trying  to  think  of  something 
to  say  that  caused  all  the  trouble."  Her  thoughts 
were  still  with  Miss  Hemingway.  "Polly,  why  do 
you  suppose  she  kissed  me!" 

"Because  she  was  sorry  for  the  way  she  had 
spoken,  and  that  was  her  way  of  apologizing.  If 
you  should  go  to  see  her  she'd  feed  you  with  every 
kind  of  cake  you  ever  heard  of,  and  treat  you  like 
a  queen." 

"Go  to  see  her!"  gasped  Lois,  in  mock  dismay. 
"I'd  never  dare." 


50  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


That  evening  as  the  two  girls  were  strolling 
around  the  grounds,  arm  in  arm,  the  mystery  of 
the  haunted  house  was  still  in  Polly's  thoughts. 
The  days  had  already  lengthened  noticeably  and  at 
seven-thirty  it  was  still  light. 

" Let's  go  see  Banker,' '  suggested  Lois  as  they 
crossed  the  path  that  led  to  the  barn. 

4 'All  right,"  agreed  Polly.  "Tim  said  he  was 
much  better  this  morning  and  that  we  could  drive 
him  any  time  now." 

The  pony  had  really  been  laid  up  after  his 
struggle  in  the  mud  bank,  something  was  strained 
in  his  back,  but  a  week  in  the  stable  under  Tim's 
careful  treatment,  had  made  him  quite  spry  again, 
and  apparently  eager  for  more  adventures. 

Polly  and  Lois  had  petted  and  fussed  over  him 
to  such  an  extent,  that  a  less  seriously  minded 
pony  would  have  had  his  head  completely  turned. 
To-night,  they  found  Tim  giving  him  an  extra  rub- 
bing down. 

"Will  he  really  be  all  right  to  drive  soon?" 
asked  Polly,  doubtfully. 

"Fit  as  fiddlers,  miss.  He's  been  shamming 
these  last  few  days,  that  I  know.  When  he  don't 
think  I'm  looking  he's  as  frisky  as  a  colt." 

"Don't  let's  go  in  yet,"  Polly  said  as  they  left 
the  stable.  "It's  such  a  glorious  night.  How 
about  a  walk?" 

"I'd  love  it." 


The  First  Call 


51 


"Do  you  think  your  mother  would  like  to 
come  ? ' ' 

"No,  she's  writing  to  Dad,  but  I'll  tell  her  we're 
going." 

"Tell  her  we'll  take  all  the  dogs  with  us — then 
she  won't  worry,"  called  Polly  as  Lois  entered  the 
house  by  one  of  the  windows  that  gave  on  the 
porch. 

A  few  minutes  later,  with  the  dogs  jumping  and 
frisking  at  their  heels,  they  started  across  the  pas- 
ture, intending  to  strike  the  path  that  ran  beside 
a  tumbled  down  stone  wall  that  marked  the  far- 
thest eastern  boundary  of  the  Pendleton  grounds. 

"It  won't  get  really  dark  for  an  hour  and  if 
it  does,  we  can  always  strike  the  road  and  come 
back  that  way,"  Polly  said. 

"Past  the  haunted  house,  oh,  Poll,  the  dreadful 
English  woman  might  run  out  and  eat  us,"  Lois 
laughed. 

"Not  much  chance,  the  dogs  would  be  more 
likely  to  eat  her." 

"Well,  anyway,  I  prefer  this  path  to  the  road; 
I  hate  the  look  of  that  house,  it's  so  spooky." 

"Wait  till  you  see  the  back  of  it,  this  path  leads 
right  up  to  the  foot  of  their  place  and  the  barn's 
there.  It's  all  falling  to  pieces  and  nothing  but 
bats  and  rats  live  in  it,"  Polly  teased. 

"Polly,  you  wretch,  I  shan't  go  another  step," 
Lois  threatened. 


52  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


"Oh,  come  on,  it's  not  so  bad,  besides,  see  how 
light  it  is." 

For  a  while  they  walked  in  silence,  it  was  too 
beautiful  an  evening  to  spoil  by  talking.  But  as 
spring  evenings  are  apt  to  do  it  ended  rather  sud- 
denly. They  were  both  busy  with  their  thoughts 
and  did  not  notice  how  the  sky  grew  darker  and 
darker  every  minute.  By  the  time  they  had 
reached  the  end  of  their  grounds  and  had  come 
to  the  Rents'  barn  it  was  quite  dark.  The  dogs 
stopped  frisking  and  walked  sedately  at  heel. 

Suddenly,  Sandy,  who  had  been  trotting  ahead, 
stopped,  lifted  his  head  and  gave  a  quick  sharp 
bark. 

"Polly,  what  was  that?  Great  goodness!  See 
how  dark  it  is."  Lois  was  frightened  out  of  her 
revery. 

"It's  nothing  at  all,  probably,  but  a  harmless 
squirrel.  Sandy  always  does  that.  Go  after  him, 
old  fellow,"  she  called  to  the  dog.  But  he  refused 
to  budge.  After  a  minute  more  of  listening  he 
ran  to  the  part  of  the  wall  which  was  close  to  the 
red  barn  and  began  smelling  the  ground. 

"It  is  something,  look,  the  other  dogs  know  it, 
too,"  Lois  whispered  excitedly. 

Jack  and  Jill  had  run  up  with  Sandy  and  were 
intently  listening. 

Polly  motioned  Lois  to  stand  still,  while  she 
walked  softly  up  to  the  wall  and  peered  over.  At 


The  First  Call 


53 


first,  she  heard  not  a  sound,  then  a  faint  sobbing 
noise  caught  her  attention.  She  went  back  to 
Lois. 

"Some  one  is  crying  on  the  other  side  of  the 
wall." 

Lois,  assured  that  the  weird  something  was 
quite  human,  regained  her  courage  and  ap- 
proached the  wall.  This  time  the  sobs  were  more 
distinct.  They  came  from  behind  a  clump  of 
trees,  so  that  the  person  was  completely  hidden 
from  view. 

The  dogs,  during  this  time,  had  been  watching 
Polly  as  if  waiting  for  her  orders,  but  as  the  noise 
grew  louder,  Sandy  could  not  keep  still  any  longer 
and  barked  excitedly.  The  sobs  gave  place  to  a 
startled  scream.    Polly  and  Lois  held  their  breath. 

Suddenly  from  behind  the  clump  of  trees,  a 
small  figure  in  white  appeared,  stood  still  for  a 
half  minute  and  then  ran  swiftly  out  of  sight. 
The  girls  looked  peeringly  into  the  dark.  They 
were  no  longer  frightened. 

"Lo,  it  was  the  girl  next  door,"  Polly  whis- 
pered. "She  was  crying,  we  must  have  fright- 
ened her  to  death." 

"I  wonder  what's  the  matter!  She  sounded  as 
if  her  heart  was  broken." 

"Do  you  think  we  should  have  spoken!" 

"No,  she  wouldn't  have  liked  us  to  have  seen 
her  in  tears." 


54  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


"I  suppose  not."  Lois  looked  thoughtful. 
"Poll,  can't  we  do  something?  She  must  be  aw- 
fully unhappy." 

They  retraced  their  steps  slowly  in  spite  of  the 
darkness. 

6 '  We  must.  It  does  seem  mysterious,  but  I  sup- 
pose that's  because  they  live  in  the  haunted  house. 
It 's  really  silly  to  imagine  there 's  anything  queer 
about  them."  Polly  was  trying  to  convince  her- 
self as  well  as  Lois. 

"But,  Poll,"  Lois  was  puzzled,  "why  are 
they  so  unsociable!" 

"Oh,  there  may  be  lots  of  reasons  for  that — 
maybe  the  mother  is  an  invalid." 

"I  guess  you're  right,  and  perhaps  the  girl  is 
just  terribly  lonely." 

They  had  reached  the  back  of  the  house. 

"We  must  meet  her,"  Polly  said.    "Poor  kid." 

"Yes,  but  after  this,"  Lois  answered  forlornly. 

"How  are  we  going  to  do  it?" 


CHAPTER  IV 


MAUD 

The  hoiv  was  still  unsettled  in  Polly's  and  Lois' 
minds  as  they  took  their  seats  in  the  pony  cart 
one  morning  two  days  after  the  eventful  evening 
of  their  walk.  There  had  been  two  days  of  rain 
and  mugginess  and  the  girls  had  spent  their  time 
wandering  about  the  big  house  and,  with  Mrs. 
Farwell's  aid,  arranging  the  furniture,  much  to 
Sarah's  horror  and  their  own  complete  satisfac- 
tion. The  big  drawing-room  had  perhaps  lost 
some  of  its  dignity  but  it  made  up  for  the  loss 
in  comfort.  The  old-fashioned  sofa  which  had  al- 
ways been  placed  stiffly  between  the  two  windows 
was  moved  over  in  front  of  the  open  fireplace. 
Beautiful  bowls  and  vases,  kept  by  Aunt  Hannah 
safely  locked  in  her  china  closet,  were  brought 
out  and  put  on  tables  and  mantel  and  filled  with 
spring  flowers.  The  heavy  portieres  came  down 
to  allow  the  sun  to  enter.  Indeed  the  room  took 
on  such  a  cozy  look  that  it  must  have  shocked  the 
big  sedate  grandfather's  clock  that  scowled  dis- 
approval from  its  remote  corner. 

But  to-day  had  dawned  bright  and  clear,  with 


56  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


that  freshness  in  the  air  that  always  comes  after 
a  rain,  and  the  girls  were  glad  enough  to  leave 
their  work  and  come  out  into  the  sunshine. 

Banker,  who  had  had  two  extra  days  of  rest  in 
the  stable,  was  pronounced  by  Tim  to  be  abso- 
lutely fit  for  driving,  so  it  was  decreed  that  they 
should  go  to  the  village  for  the  mail,  as  they  were 
expecting  Betty's  answer  to  their  invitation  any 
day. 

"Be  careful,  Banker  may  be  frisky,"  Mrs.  Far- 
well  called  from  the  porch  as  they  started. 

"We  will,  good-by,"  Polly  and  Lois  assured 
her,  as  they  drove  off  with  a  flourish. 

But  Banker  showed  little  disposition  to  be 
frisky,  in  fact  he  showed  a  decided  unwillingness 
to  go  at  all.  The  best  Polly  could  do  was  to  urge 
him  into  a  slow  lazy  trot. 

"Oh,  Banker,  wake  up,  you're  crawling,' '  she 
admonished  as  they  neared  the  village. 

"Never  mind,  let  him  go  his  own  pace;  we 
aren't  in  a  hurry  and  it's  such  a  bully  day,"  Lois 
said. 

"All  right,  if  you  don't  mind,  but  it's  a  shame 
to  spoil  him.  Wonder  if  we  shall  hear  from 
Bet?" 

"And  Bob." 

"Yes,  of  course.  Wouldn't  it  be  great  if  they 
came  together,"  Polly  spoke  in  the  most  matter 
of  fact  tones.    Not  for  worlds  would  she  have 


Maud 


57 


Lois  guess  the  thoughts  that  were  worrying  her. 
Ever  since  she  had  been  sure  of  Bob's  coming  she 
had  had  a  dreadful  time  with  herself. 

There  was  one  Polly  who  wanted  him  to  come 
and  who  hoped  that  by  the  end  of  the  summer 
they  would  be  really  good  friends,  but  the  other 
Polly,  the  one  who  had  come  into  being  at  Seddon 
Hall,  was  afraid  to  want  him  to  come. 

If  she  should  show  she  liked  him,  and  she  would, 
because  he  was  such  fun,  Betty  and  Lois  might 
think  her  sentimental. 

Polly  had  seen  too  many  girls  at  school  who  had 
been  termed  "boy  crazy/'  not  to  shudder  at  the 
idea.  But  these  fits  of  worrying  never  lasted  very 
long.  The  real  Polly  was  far  too  sensible,  and 
she  would  always  end  all  arguments  with :  6 '  There 
is  no  reason  why  I  shouldn't  be  just  as  glad  to 
see  Bob  as  Betty,"  and  the  other  Polly  would 
have  to  admit  she  was  right. 

" What's  the  matter?  You  look  worried," 
Lois  interrupted  her  musing,  and  Polly  came  to 
with  a  start. 

"Why,  nothing,"  she  stammered.  "I  was  only 
wondering  what  we  would  do  to  amuse  them. 
Betty  will  be  all  right,  but  do  you  think  Bob  will 
like  it  well  enough  to  say!" 

"Of  course  he  will,  silly,  he  will  be  just  as  keen 
about  this  place  as  mother  and  I  are." 

"If  it  would  only  get  warm  we  could  go  in 


58  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


swimming,  and  I'm  hoping  that  Uncle  Eoddy  will 
take  his  boat  out  of  dry  dock. ' ' 

"Has  Uncle  Eoddy  a  boat?"  Lois  shot  the  ques- 
tion out  excitedly. 

"Yes,  a  wonderful  one.  It's  a  forty  foot  sail, 
but  he  hasn't  used  it  for  years." 

"Why  not?" 

"Well,  you  see  he  didn't  come  up  often  in  the 
summer.  Aunt  Hannah  was  sometimes  unrea- 
sonable, so  he  just  stopped  coming  at  all." 

"But  the  boat,  Poll,"  Lois  interrupted  hur- 
riedly. She  did  not  want  Polly  to  think  she  was 
curious  about  her  family  affairs. 

"I've  almost  forgotten  what  it  looks  like,  but 
I  know  it's  got  a  big  cabin  and  a  place  to  cook." 

"Wouldn't  it  be  wonderful  if  it  were  ready 
when  we  had  the  house  party?" 

"Do  you  think  Bob  could  sail  it?" 

"You  bet  he  could.  He  could  sail  anything 
that's  sailable."  Lois  was  vain  only  where  her 
brother  was  concerned.  She  had  never  discovered 
anything  that  he  could  not  do. 

By  this  time  they  had  come  in  sight  of  the 
little  green  and  white  village.  Each  neat  white 
house  sat  snuggled  in  its  bed  of  green  lawn  and 
each  brass  knocker  shone  and  sparkled  in  its  at- 
tempt to  outshine  its  neighbor. 

The  grass  on  the  village  green  was  cropped 
close  and  looked  like  a  carpet  of  moss.    The  four 


Maud 


59 


rows  of  big  elm  trees  encouraged  by  the  rain  had 
burst  forth  almost  fully  leafed. 

At  the  end  of  the  Green  was  the  white  church 
built  in  1700,  with  its  double  row  of  leaded  win- 
dows. 

"Oh,  Polly,  how  adorable  it  looks,  it  is  so 
clean,' '  Lois  exclaimed  delightedly. 

Polly  laughed;  it  was  a  familiar  sight  to  her. 

"That's  Miss  Hemingway's  house,  over  there/ ' 
she  pointed.    6 ' Want  to  call  on  her?" 

"No,  thanks,"  said  Lois,  looking  intently  at 
the  house.  "I  declare,  Polly,  wouldn't  you 
know  it  was  hers;  it's  much  primmer  than  the 
rest." 

"Here's  the  Post  Office" — Polly  drew  up  be- 
fore an  old  frame  building — "Now  for  Bet's  let- 
ter." 

They  entered  to  find  several  people  before  them. 
Polly  peeked  into  their  box. 

"Look,  Lois,  there's  mail  there,  and  I  think  that 
letter  is  from  Betty." 

This  proved  to  be  the  case.  After  a  consider- 
able wait,  followed  by  a  long  gossip  with  the  post- 
mistress, who  was  greatly  interested  in  Polly  and 
her  " boarding  school  friend,"  the  letter  was 
pushed  through  the  tiny  window  and  eagerly 
opened. 

"It  is  from  Bet,"  Lois  said.  "Bead  it  quickly. 
Can  she  come?    When!    Oh,  do  hurry." 


60  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


"Oh,  wait  a  minute,  it's  in  verse,  listen,' '  and 
Polly  read: 

Dear  Poll  and  Lo: 

Will  I  come  and  make  you  a  visit? 
I'll  be  with  you  day  after  to-morrow, 
And  the  fact  that  I  can't  get  there  sooner 
Is  all  that  causes  me  sorrow. 
I'm  so  excited  to  see  you 
That  I'm  standing  on  my  head 
And  writing  this  silly  jingle, 
When  I  ought  to  be  in  bed. 

Jemima!  this  place  is  awful, 
It's  nothing  but  rocking  chairs 
Filled  with  knitting  old  ladies 
And  couples  that  hunt  in  pairs. 
The  girls  our  age  are  just  silly; 
They  giggle  the  whole  day  through. 
You  bet  I'll  be  glad  to  leave  them 
To  come  and  talk  sense  with  you. 

Why,  they  don't  know  the  meaning  of  basket-ball, 
Never  heard  of  Seddon  Hall. 
Lordy!    I  thought  we  were  famous; 
My  pride  got  a  terrible  fall. 
Do  forgive  this  foolish  rhyming, 
But  I'm  much  too  thrilled  to  be  sane, 
And  I  simply  can't  wait  for  the  minute, 
To  get  on  that  blessed  train. 
Good-by  for  sixty-two  hours. 

P.  S.  Arrive  at  your  station  at  3  p.  M.  Thursday,  if  I  don't 
get  lost  in  New  Haven.    Don't  you  dare  to  forget  to  meet  me. 

Excitedly, 

Bet. 


Lois  and  Polly  laughed  long  and  heartily  over 
the  letter. 


Maud 


61 


* i Isn't  that  great,  I'm  so  glad  she  can  come,  and 
isn't  that  poem  just  like  her!"  Polly  demanded, 
delighted  at  the  prospect  of  having  her  friend  with 
her  so  soon. 

"We  must  read  it  to  mother;  there's  a  Jemima 
and  a  Lordy  both  in  it,"  laughed  Lois,  then, 
under  her  breath:  " Polly,  quick,  get  in  the  cart, 
Miss  Hemingway  is  just  coming  out  of  her  house, 
and  if  she  speaks  to  me,  I'll  run." 

They  jumped  in  hurriedly,  and  Polly  touched 
Banker  with  the  whip,  and  before  Miss  Heming- 
way had  reached  the  box-wood  hedge  that  bor- 
dered her  trim  little  lawn,  they  had  put  the  Green 
between  them. 

Banker,  his  head  high,  now  that  their  direc- 
tion was  homeward,  trotted  briskly  along. 

Polly  let  the  reins  fall  slack  on  his  back  and 
took  off  her  big  sun  hat.  The  soft  wind  blew 
her  hair  about  her  face  and  made  flaunting  flags 
out  of  her  enormous  sailor  tie.  They  reread  and 
discussed  Betty's  letter  and  planned  for  her  visit. 
It  was  absorbing  and  it  made  them  forget  their 
immediate  surroundings. 

Banker  slowed  up  as  he  came  to  the  first  of  the 
home  hills  and  took  it  at  a  sedate  walk.  But 
when  he  reached  the  top  and  saw  the  straight  level 
half  mile,  which  Tim  called  the  breathing  stretch, 
that  connected  the  two,  his  mind  flew  to  his  peace- 
ful box  stall,  and  he  broke  into  a  quick  trot.  Polly 


62  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


tightened  her  hold  on  the  reins  from  habit  and 
went  on  talking  about  Betty. 

"Can  you  imagine  Bet  in  an  hotel ?"  she 
laughed. 

"I  should  say  not.  I'd  loved  to  have  seen  her 
face  when  the  other  girls  said  they'd  never  heard 
of  Seddon  Hall.  I  wonder  what  Ange  and  Connie 
are  doing  this  summer.  We  promised  to  write 
them;  we  must  too,  Polly.' ' 

"Yes." 

"Why  do  you  suppose  we  haven't  had  a  letter 
from  Louise?" 

Polly  looked  thoughtful.  Louise  Preston  had 
been  the  President  of  the  Senior  Class  and  Cap- 
tain of  the  basket  ball  team  at  Seddon  Hall  and 
Polly  and  Lois  were  devoted  to  her,  and  had  taken 
her  as  a  sort  of  model  all  the  past  winter.  The 
fact  that  their  several  letters  to  her  had  remained 
unanswered  caused  them  no  little  disappoint- 
ment. 

"I've  written  her  twice,"  Polly  said  reluc- 
tantly; "perhaps  she's  forgotten  us." 

"Don't  you  suppose  she  meant  it  when  she 
asked  us  to  visit  her  at  camp  this  summer?"  asked 
Lois. 

"I  thought — whoa,  Banker — oh,  look — "  Pol- 
ly's warning  came  too  late. 

Unknown  to  them,  Banker  had  quickened  his 
trot  to  a  gallop  as  he  neared  the  haunted  house. 


Maud 


63 


The  rain  had  dislodged  one  of  the  stones  that 
marked  the  driveway ;  it  had  been  white  once,  but 
was  now  a  muddy  brown.  In  his  rush  for  home, 
Banker  did  not  see  it  and  as  the  already  strained 
right  wheel  of  the  cart  struck  it,  there  was  a 
sudden  jar  and  the  wheel  broke  with  a  loud  crack. 
Polly  and  Lois  were  thrown  together  on  the  low 
side  of  the  cart.  The  blue  of  sky  and  the  green 
trees  swam  before  them. 

Then,  almost  at  once  they  were  conscious  of  a 
voice  calling: 

"Oh,  help,  help,  they're  hurt." 

Polly  collected  her  wits.  Lois  was  badly  dazed, 
and  looked  up  and  into  two  blue  eyes — startled 
wide  with  terror.  They  belonged  to  a  slim  little 
figure  completely  enveloped  by  a  white  pinafore, 
her  flaxen  braids  hung  almost  to  her  knees 
and  her  hands  were  pressed  tight  against  her 
heart, 

Polly  at  once  recognized  her  as  the  mysterious 
child. 

"Don't  be  frightened,"  she  said,  smiling  as- 
surance. "We're  not  a  bit  hurt,  that  is,  I'm  not. 
How  about  you,  Lo?" 

Lois  was  holding  one  hand  up  to  her  cheek,  and 
looking  bewildered.  At  Polly's  question  she  took 
it  away,  it  was  covered  with  blood  and  her  cheek 
showed  a  deep  cut. 

"I'm  sort  of  dizzy.   I  guess  I  scratched  my 


64  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


face,"  she  faltered.  Polly  saw,  or  thought  she 
saw,  signs  of  fainting. 

Turning  quickly  to  the  child,  she  said  hurriedly: 
"Get  me  some  water  quick."  It  was  more  like  a 
command  than  a  request,  and  the  child  hurried  to 
obey. 

Polly  tied  Banker  to  a  tree,  helped  Lois  out  of 
the  cart  on  to  the  grass  beside  the  road  and  waited 
impatiently.  At  last  the  mysterious  child  re- 
turned, but  empty  handed. 

"Where's  the  water?"  Polly  demanded.  She 
was  worried  about  Lois  and  fear  made  her  voice 
sharp. 

"  It 's  coming  at  once. ' '  The  words  were  hardly 
spoken  before  Polly  heard  excited  voices  behind 
the  high  hedge.  Two  women  appeared;  one  was 
short  and  stout,  she  was  carrying  a  pitcher  of 
water  in  one  hand,  and  a  bottle  of  smelling  salts 
in  the  other.  With  her  was  the  most  beautiful 
woman  Polly  had  ever  seen.  Her  face  was  very 
pale  and  she  was  dressed  in  black.  She  raised 
her  hands  to  her  heart  exactly  as  the  little  girl  had 
done. 

"Poor  child,"  she  exclaimed,  dropping  on  her 
knees  beside  Lois  and  supporting  her  head  against 
her  shoulder.  "Some  water,  Susan,"  she  di- 
rected. "Here,  dear,  drink  this,  and  now  smell 
these  salts.  What  an  ugly  cut,  but  it  is  best  for 
it  to  bleed,  the  cold  water  may  sting,"  she  added 


Maud 


65 


as  she  dipped  a  handkerchief  into  the  glass  and 
bathed  the  cheek. 

Lois  opened  her  eyes;  she  had  not  exactly 
fainted,  but  the  shock  had  made  her  very  dizzy. 
Polly  held  one  of  her  hands. 

"All  right,  Lo?"  she  asked. 

"Yes,  of  course.  Oh,  thank  you  ever  so  much," 
she  added,  noticing  the  mysterious  lady  for  the 
first  time. 

"Don't  mention  it,  dear.  Here,  Susan,  help 
me  to  get  her  into  the  house.  Don't  you  think  she 
had  better  rest  before  she  tries  to  walk,"  she 
added,  turning  to  Polly. 

Between  them  they  helped  her  up  the  drive — 
under  the  solemn  pine  trees — to  the  shaky  front 
steps,  and  at  last  into  the  house. 

To  Polly  it  was  a  thrilling  event.  All  her  life 
she  had  wondered  and  dreamed,  and  listened  to 
servants'  tales  about  the  gaunt  old  place,  until  it 
had  resembled  a  living  thing  rather  than  an  inani- 
mate object.  And  now,  after  all  these  years  of 
speculation,  she  was  crossing  the  threshold  in  the 
most  matter  of  fact  way. 

What  she  expected  to  find  beyond  the  door  was 
not  easily  explained;  she  imagined  all  sorts  of 
queer  shapes  and  shadows,  combined  with  hollow 
Qoises,  creaking  boards,  eerie  green  lights  and  a 
damp  cellar  smell. 

As  Susan  opened  the  door,  all  the  pictures  that 


66  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

her  childish  mind  had  ever  painted  came  back  to 
her  and  she  hesitated.  Only  for  a  fraction  of  a 
second,  however,  for  the  delightful  scene  that  met 
her  eyes  dispelled  all  gloom. 

The  living  room  into  which  they  led  Lois  was 
bright  with  gay  colored  chintz  and  wicker  furni- 
ture.  It  was  the  happiest  room  possible. 

Polly's  surprise  was  so  great  that  she  forgot 
to  help  Lois  and  stood  looking  about  her,  until  the 
beautiful  lady  spoke. 

"Lie  here  on  the  sofa,  dear  child,  and  rest; 
here  is  a  cushion  for  your  head.  Now  are  you 
quite  comfy?  Maud,  dear,  will  you  run  up  to 
mother's  room  and  get  that  light  shawl ?" 

Polly  smiled  to  herself.  Maud  so  exactly  suited 
the  long,  fair  hair  and  wide  blue  eyes  of  the  mys- 
terious child. 

"It's  awfully  nice  of  you  to  take  all  this  trou- 
ble," she  said  aloud  to  Maud's  mother.  "I  don't 
know  how  it  all  happened.  Banker  was  very 
frisky  and  I  guess  Lo  and  I  weren't  paying  much 
attention.  Then  you  see  we'd  been  stuck  in  the 
mud  last  week  and  I  believe  it  strained  the  wheel 
more  than  we  guessed." 

"What  a  pity,  the  cart  is  badly  hurt,  I'm 
afraid." 

"I  suppose  I  ought  to  get  Banker  home.  May 
I  use  your  telephone?"  Polly  asked  embarrassed, 
without  knowing  why. 


Maud 


67 


The  beautiful  lady  smiled.  "We  have  no  tele- 
phone, but  I'll  send  Susan  up  to  your  home  with 
any  message,"  she  said. 

"Oh,  don't  bother,  we  live  just  up  the  hill  and 
I'll  go.  Lois'  mother  will  be  worried  if  we  don't 
come  back,"  Polly  protested. 

"You're  a  plucky  child,  but  I  wouldn't  dream 
of  letting  you.  You  don't  realize  it,  but  you've 
had  a  bad  shaking  up  and  ought  to  rest.  Tell 
me  where  the  house  is  and  Susan  will  go  at 
once." 

After  more  protests  from  Polly  and  firm  de- 
termination on  the  part  of  Maud's  mother,  Susan 
left  with  a  message  for  Mrs.  Farwell.  When  she 
had  gone  Maud  returned  with  the  shawl  and  her 
mother  laid  it  over  Lois. 

"I  wish  you  wouldn't  bother,"  Lois  insisted,  as 
she  straightened  it.  "I'm  really  quite  all  right; 
it's  awfully  stupid  my  being  dizzy  like  this." 

"Why,  it's  the  most  natural  thing  in  the  world. 
You  are  both  very  plucky  to  make  so  little  fuss. 
I'm  sure  had  it  happened  to  Maud  or  me,  we  would 
have  been  in  bed  for  a  week." 

Polly  laughed  heartily  at  this.  The  speaker 
was  so  cool  and  calm  looking  that  it  seemed  absurd 
to  picture  her  as  frightened. 

"That's  hard  to  believe,"  she  said  shyly. 
"You  don't  look,  well,  very  scary." 

It  was  the  lovely  lady's  turn  to  laugh. 


68  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


"She  doesn't  know  me,  does  she,  Maud?"  she 
said,  turning  to  her  daughter. 
Maud  laughed  nervously  and  said: 
"No." 

It  suddenly  struck  both  Polly  and  Lois  that  this 
was  the  first  word  she  had  spoken. 

"Polly  can't  understand  any  one  being  afraid," 
Lois  remarked,  more  for  something  to  say  than 
from  a  spirit  of  bragging.  "She's  the  bravest 
girl  at  school.  She  was  in  the  infirmary  with  a 
sprained  ankle  once,  and — " 

"Oh,  Lo,  I  do  wish  you  wouldn't,"  Polly  inter- 
rupted. But  Lois  would  have  continued  had  it 
not  been  for  the  return  of  Susan  with  Mrs.  Far- 
well,  who  looked  worried  and  frightened. 

"Lois  darling,"  she  said,  excitedly.  "What  is 
the  matter?" 

"Nothing,  Mum  dearest,  we  just  got  spilled  out 
of  the  pony  cart  and  I  cut  my  cheek.  Mrs. — " 
She  stopped  and  looked  questioningly  at  the  lovely 
lady.  "This  is  my  mother,  Mrs.  Farwell,"  she 
ended. 

"How  do  you  do,  Mrs.  Farwell.  I  am  Mrs. 
Banks.  I'm  afraid  we  haven't  had  time  to  tell 
names." 

The  two  women  looked  at  each  other  for  a  min- 
ute and  then  they  both  smiled,  and  Mrs.  Farwell 
said: 

"I  can't  thank  you  enough  for  being  so  kind 


Maud 


69 


to  Lois.  I  admit  when  I  heard  there 'd  been  an 
accident,  I  jumped  to  conclusions  and  saw  them 
both  dead.  Polly,  dear,  are  you  all  right?"  she 
added,  putting  an  arm  on  Polly's  shoulder  and 
kissing  the  top  of  her  head.  "Do  tell  me  how  it 
happened." 

Polly  explained,  and  finished  with : 

"The  first  thing  I  knew  some  one  was  saying, 
'Help,  they  are  hurt!'  and  it  was  Miss  Banks." 
She  smiled  at  Maud,  who  had  sat  like  a  statue  in 
the  corner  of  the  room.  Mrs.  Farwell  followed 
her  glance  and  was  ashamed  to  realize  that  she 
had  paid  no  attention  to  the  child. 

"How  very  lucky  you  happened  to  be  there," 
she  said,  and  getting  up  crossed  the  room  and 
seated  herself  beside  Maude,  and  in  a  few  minutes 
they  were  holding  a  lively  conversation  in  low 
tones. 

Mrs.  Banks  went  out  to  help  Susan  make  some 
tea,  and  Polly  took  Lois'  hand. 

"Are  you  really  feeling  better ?  How  you 
scared  me,"  she  whispered. 

"Poor  old  Poll,  I'm  sorry,  but  wasn't  it  funny! 
We  nearly  scared  the  mysterious  child  into  fits. 
She  hasn't  said  a  word." 

"Look  at  her  now,"  Polly  nodded  at  the  two. 
A  few  minutes  later  tea  was  served  and  it  was  a 
very  jolly  affair.  The  accident  was  the  main 
topic  of  conversation,  and  Lois  with  her  cut  cheek 


70  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


the  most  important  person.  They  lingered  over 
their  cups  until  after  five.  Mrs.  Banks  and  Maud 
walked  with  them  to  the  gate,  and  watched  them 
out  of  sight. 

"Well,  girls,  you've  seen  the  haunted  house," 
Mrs.  Farwell  laughed  as  they  walked  up  the  hill. 
She  had  an  arm  about  each  of  them.  "Did  you 
find  any  mysteries  f" 

"Not  a  one,"  Lois  answered.  "They're  just 
plain  ordinary  people." 

"No,  they're  not,"  contradicted  Polly. 
"They're  still  mysterious.  Why  did  the  maid 
tell  the  minister's  wife  that  Mrs.  Banks  was 
an  invalid,  and  why  does  she  look  so  sad, 
and  why  won't  Maud  talk  when  her  mother's 
there?" 

"Perhaps  she's  nervous,"  suggested  Lois. 

"With  her  own  mother!  How  foolish;  she 
talked  to  Mrs.  Farwell." 

"She's  not  very  happy.  I  think  you're  right, 
Polly,"  Mrs.  Farwell  said.  "There  is  some  mys- 
tery about  them.  I  asked  Mrs.  Banks  to  call  and 
she  hesitated  quite  a  while  before  she  said,  'Yes, 
I  will,  thank  you.'  " 

They  talked  the  matter  over  all  evening  and  de- 
cided that,  mystery  or  not,  they  were  not  happy, 
and  although  Maud  was  awfully  uninteresting 
they  determined  to  cheer  her  up.  In  the  new  ex- 
citement, Betty's  letter  was  forgotten.   It  was 


Maud 


71 


Lois  who  remembered  it  hours  later,  when  they 
were  getting  ready  for  bed. 

' '  Polly  Pendleton,  do  you  know  we  forgot  to  tell 
mother  about  Bet's  letter!"  she  exclaimed,  com- 
ing to  Polly's  door  and  startling  Sandy,  already 
asleep,  by  her  excited  tones. 

"Let's  tell  her  this  minute.  Wait  a  shake  'till 
I  get  my  kimona. ' ' 

They  ran  downstairs  to  the  drawing-room, 
where  Mrs.  Farwell  was  writing  letters,  and  told 
her  their  news. 

Instead  of  receiving  it  with  surprise  Mrs.  Far- 
well  looked  horror  stricken. 

"Girls,"  she  gasped,  "Bob  is  coming  to-morrow 
and  I  forgot  to  tell  you.  Did  you  ever  hear  of 
such  a  thing ! ' ' 

"Bob,  to-morrow!" 

"And  Bet,  the  day  after!" 

' 1  When  did  you  hear  f ' ' 

"He  sent  a  wire,  and  they  'phoned  it  up  from 
the  village." 

"Oh,  joy!  oh,  joy!  oh,  joy!"  Lois  danced 
wildly  around  the  room,  landing  at  last  in  a  heap 
on  one  corner  of  the  sofa. 

Polly  dropped  to  a  stool  on  the  hearth,  and 
Mrs.  Farwell  gave  up  letter  writing  for  that  night. 

As  they  gathered  around  the  fire,  too  excited  to 
think  of  sleep,  they  talked  and  planned  until  the 
wee  small  hours. 


CHAPTER  V 


THE  SUMMER  BEGINS 

Bob  stood  on  the  little  village  station  platform, 
one  arm  around  Lois  and  the  other  around  his 
mother.  The  train  by  which  he  had  arrived  was 
steaming  leisurely  out  of  sight,  leaving  a  cloud 
of  sunlit  dust  and  smoke  in  its  wake. 

"Oh,  Bob,  but  I  am  glad  to  see  you,"  Lois  ex- 
claimed, joyfully  tugging  at  his  arm  as  Mrs.  Far- 
well  offered  her  cheek  to  be  kissed.  "Are  you 
going  to  stay  a  long  time  1 9  9 

Bob  nodded  his  head,  returned  her  embrace  and 
kissed  his  mother  vigorously. 

"Hello,  what's  the  matter  with  your  face,  Lo?" 
he  asked,  noticing  the  strips  of  adhesive  plaster. 
Lois  explained,  and  by  doing  so  brought  Polly 
into  the  conversation. 

"Er,  where  is  Miss  Pendleton?"  Bob  asked,  in 
his  most  offhand  manner. 

"Why,  she  was  here  a  second  ago,"  Lois  said, 
wonderingly.  ' 1  Oh,  there  she  is  over  by  the  car- 
riage.  Polly,"  she  called. 

Polly  was  very  busy  fixing  Joan's  bit:  When 
Lois  called  she  came  forward. 

72 


The  Summer  Begins 


73 


4 4 How  do  you  do,  Mr.  Farwell, ' '  she  said.  ' 1 1 'm 
so  glad  to  see  you  again. ' ' 

" Thanks,' '  Bob  stammered,  very  awkwardly, 
Lois  thought,  and  Mrs.  Farwell  said:  "Do  come 
along  children,  this  platform  isn't  the  coolest  place 
in  the  world  to  converse.' ' 

They  hurried  into  the  carriage.  Bob  sat  beside 
Tim,  and  the  others  crowded  into  the  back  seat. 
Lois  kept  up  a  steady  stream  of  talk  all  the  way 
home,  and  showed  Bob  everything,  as  if  she  had 
lived  in  the  village  all  her  life. 

"You  seem  to  be  thoroughly  at  home,"  he  said, 
when  she  paused  for  a  minute. 

"I  am,  Bob,  don't  you  love  it!  Look,  there  is 
the  place  where  the  wheel  broke,  and  that's  the 
house  that  they  say  is  haunted,  where  they  took 
me  in  after  the  accident." 

"See  any  ghosts?"  Bob  asked. 

"Not  a  one." 

"Too  bad,  perhaps  they  only  walk  at  night. 
I'll  take  mother  over  some  evening,  and  see  if  we 
can  scare  up  a  few,  she'd  love  it,  wouldn't  you, 
Mother?" 

"No,  thank  you,  Bob,"  laughed  Mrs.  Farwell, 
"you'll  have  to  find  another  companion  for  a 
ghost  hunt.  Take  Polly,  perhaps  you  can  frighten 
her,  I  doubt  it  though.  The  other  evening  they 
went  for  a  walk" —  and  Mrs.  Farwell  went  on  to 
tell  him  of-  their  scare,  ending  with:    "Lois  ad- 


74  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


mitted  that  she  quaked  in  her  shoes,  but  Polly 
never  turned  a  hair. 

Bob  was  about  to  make  an  appropriate  remark, 
when  they  came  suddenly  in  sight  of  the  house. 
As  his  mother  had  done  on  her  first  glimpse  of  it, 
he  exclaimed:  "I  say,  whose  house  is  that?  It's 
a  corker.' ' 

"Ours,"  Lois  promptly  told  him,  with  all  the 
pride  of  ownership. 

Bob  turned  to  Polly.  "Tell  you  what  it  is,  Miss 
Pendleton,"  he  said,  "if  you  don't  look  out  Lois 
will  be  saying  mine,  next." 

"Bobby,  how  mean  you  are,  besides  Polly 
wouldn't  mind  if  I  did,  would  you,  Poll?" 

"Of  course  I  wouldn't,  silly,"  Polly  replied. 
"You  can  have  it  all,  except  Sandy  and  the  grand- 
father clock.    That's  Mrs.  Farwell's." 

"There,  you  see!"   Lois  was  triumphant. 

"Who's  Sandy?"  Bob  asked,  as  he  helped  them 
out  at  the  old-fashioned  carriage  block.  At  the 
first  sound  of  the  wheels  on  the  drive  Sandy  had 
rushed  to  meet  them.  He  had  been  left  home  be- 
cause of  his  lately  acquired  habit  of  running  un- 
der the  cars.  He  was  now  jumping  up  on  Polly, 
and  barking  joyfully. 

"He  seems  to  be  speaking  for  himself,"  she 
laughed,  answering  Bob's  question.  "Down, 
Sandy,  and  give  your  paw  like  a  gentle- 
man." 


The  Summer  Begins 


75 


Sandy  obeyed,  and  Bob  took  the  offered  paw  and 
shook  it  gravely. 

"I'm  not  surprised  that  yon  won't  give  him  np. 
You're  a  fine  old  fellow."  They  were  both  pat- 
ting Sandy  now. 

"Do  you  like  dogs?"  Polly  asked. 

"You  bet,  there's  nothing  finer  on  earth,  than  a 
good  dog. ' ' 

"I'm  awfully  glad  you  think  so — we've  two 
others." 
"Eeally,  what  kind?" 
"Setters." 
"Irish?" 

"No,  English,  black  and  white." 
"Do  show  them  to  me." 
"Now?" 

"Yes,  why  not?" 

"All  right,  come  on,  they're  in  the  barn." 

"Do  you  hunt  with  them?" 

"I?    Certainly  not,  Uncle  Eoddy  does  though." 

Mrs.  Farwell  and  Lois  had  reached  the  house 
during  this  conversation.    They  turned. 

"Well,  I  never,"  Lois  exclaimed.  "They 
haven't  even  started." 

Mrs.  Farwell  smiled,  ""Well,  dear,  you  know 
Bob  when  he  starts  talking  about  dogs." 

"I  know  he  has  to  be  interrupted,"  Lois  replied. 

"Oh,  you  two,"  she  called,  "aren't  you  ever 
coming?" 


76  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

Her  voice  reached  Bob  across  the  lawn.  He  had 
just  said: 

"Well,  where's  the  barn,  Miss  Pendleton?" 
And  Polly  had  answered : 

"The  other  side  of  the  house;  if  we  go  well 
have  to  leave  Sandy  here,  he's  fearfully  jealous.' ' 

At  that  point  they  were  aware  of  Lois'  voice. 
Bob  turned,  as  if  suddenly  struck  with  a  happy 
inspiration. 

"We're  going  around  to  the  barn  first,"  he 
called ;  "you  keep  Sandy  here  with  you,  will  you?" 

Lois  put  both  hands  on  her  hips  and  gasped. 

"Well,  I  never,  if  that's  not  the  nicest  way  of 
saying,  1  you  're  not  wanted,  sister  dear.'  "  Then 
she  laughed  so  hard  that  she  had  scarcely  breath 
left  to  whistle  for  Sandy.  Two  hours  later,  when 
they  sat  down  to  dinner,  Polly  and  Lois  had 
changed  their  sailor  suits  for  dimity  dresses,  and 
Bob  had  exchanged  his  tweed  Norfolk  suit  for 
white  ducks. 

The  flicker  of  the  four  candles  looked  pale  in 
the  rays  of  the  setting  sun  that  slanted  through 
the  diamond  panes  of  the  window,  lighting  up  un- 
expected corners  of  the  dark  room. 

Bob  surveyed  the  scene  with  delight.  One  ray 
of  light  rested  on  Mrs.  Farwell's  shoulder  and  lost 
itself  in  her  soft  brown  hair,  as  she  sat  in  the 
quaint,  high  backed  chair  at  the  head  of  the  table, 
and  he  thought,  as  he  always  did,  when  he  had  been 


The  Summer  Begins 


77 


away  from  her,  how  particularly  nice  and  com- 
fortable it  was  that  this  particular  mother  was  his 
mother.  From  her  he  glanced  at  Lois  and  then 
at  Polly.  "Pretty  much  alright,"  he  said  under 
his  breath. 

Mrs.  Farwell  looked  up  and  put  her  hand  on  his 
affectionately. 

"Dear  old  Bobby,  it  is  nice  to  have  you  with  us," 
she  said. 

"Jemima  Jinks!  I  knew  there  was  something 
I  wanted  to  tell  you,  Bob,"  Lois  exclaimed, 
suddenly  upsetting  the  calm  in  which  every- 
one was  eating  soup.  "Betty  is  coming  to-mor- 
row. ' ' 

"Tell  me  something  I  don't  know,"  Bob  teased. 
"You  didn't  know  it." 
"I  did." 

"Who  told  you?" 
"Polly." 

It  was  the  first  time  he  had  called  Polly  anything 
but  Miss  Pendleton.  He  was  rather  surprised  at 
himself,  but  no  one  seemed  to  notice  it,  so  he  went 
on  to  ask : 

"She's  the  girl  who  fell  into  the  pond,  isn't 
she?" 

"The  river,"  corrected  Lois. 

"The  river  then,"  Bob  continued.  "And  she 
plays  basket-ball  almost  as  well  as  you  do.  How 
long  is  she  going  to  stay?" 


78  Polly  *s  Summer  Vacation 


"For  two  weeks  anyway,  and  longer  if  we  can 
make  her,"  Polly  told  him. 

"Oh,  then  111  see  something  of  her.  I  have  to 
go  back  to  school  Sunday  night  for  one  more  ex- 
amination on  Monday." 

This  announcement  was  met  with  a  groan  from 
the  others,  which  turned  to  smiles  as  Bob  con- 
tinued, "But  I'll  be  back  Tuesday  for  the  rest  of 
the  summer.    That  is,  if  you  can  stand  me." 

"We'll  try,"  Polly  said  demurely. 

"How  about  bringing  some  fellows  back  with 
me,  while  Betty's  here?"  he  asked,  acting  on  the 
hint  his  mother  had  let  fall  in  one  of  her  letters. 

"Oh,  will  you,  Bob?  I  know  we  could  have  a 
good  time."  Lois  dropped  her  teasing  tone,  and 
became  very  serious.    i  '  You  're  a  darling. ' ' 

"Yes,  I'll  see  who  I  can  scare  up  on  Monday." 

Dinner  went  merrily  by  to  the  tune  of  their  com- 
ing house-party.  They  made  plan  after  plan,  to 
discard  each  as  a  better  one  came  to  mind. 

After  dinner,  Lois  and  Polly  took  Bob  for  a 
walk,  and  showed  him  the  haunted  house.  The 
last  trace  of  the  sun  was  still  in  the  sky  and  the 
old  tumble  down  barn,  and  ragged  wall,  lost  by 
the  faint  light  some  of  the  eerie  spookiness  it  had 
had  by  night. 

On  the  way  back,  Bob  and  Polly  decided  to  per- 
sonally put  the  two  setters  to  bed  in  the  barn,  and 
Lois  said,  "Well,  I  never,"  for  the  second  time 


The  Summer  Begins 


79 


that  day,  as  she  was  requested  to  take  Sandy  back 
with  her. 

After  they  had  locked  the  carriage  house  door 
and  waited  to  hear  the  dogs  stop  barking  and  set- 
tle down  in  the  straw,  they  loitered  back  over  the 
lawn  through  the  deepening  twilight. 

Bob  said:  " Polly,  you  don't  mind  my  calling 
you  Polly,  do  you  ? ' ' 

"Not  if  I  may  call  you  Bob. 

"Well,  of  course,  then  it's  a  go — shake.' ' 

They  shook  hands  solemnly  and  Bob  went  on: 
"I  have  a  scheme  up  my  sleeve  and  you've  got  to 
help  me.    I  think  I  can  work  it." 

"Go  on,  I'll  do  anything  I  can,"  Polly  prom- 
ised. 

"What  was  the  boy  like  wTho  pulled  Betty  out 
of  the  river  that  day?" 

"Why  he  had  awfully  red  hair  and — "  but  the 
rest  of  the  conspiracy  was  lost  in  the  darkness. 

Betty  arrived  next  day.  Her  letter  had  said 
she  would  reach  the  village  at  three  o'clock. 

"And  that  means  she  will  have  to  change  at 
New  Haven  at  twelve-thirty,"  Bob  said,  at  break- 
fast.   "Let's  meet  her  there." 

His  suggestion  was  received  with  delight  by 
Polly  and  Lois.  They  bolted  the  rest  of  their 
breakfast  and  were  ready  for  the  one  morning 
train  at  ten  o'clock. 

They  drove  down  in  the  pony  cart  and  reached 


80  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


the  station  just  in  time  to  see  it  lumbering  in. 
They  had  the  car  to  themselves,  and  sat  down  be- 
side the  one  window  that  would  open. 

Polly  and  Lois  sat  together,  and  Bob  turned 
over  the  seat  and  rode  backward. 

"Phew,  this  is  a  wild  thing  to  do,"  he  com- 
mented, fanning  himself  with  his  straw  hat. 
"This  Betty  person  had  better  be  awfully  nice  or 
111  resent  having  been  dragged  out  on  a  day  like 
this  to  meet  her." 

Polly  and  Lois  both  exclaimed,  at  once : 

< 6 Well,  I  like  that !   Who  suggested  it?" 

Bob  took  up  the  argument  and  carried  it  on  to 
the  rattle  and  bump  of  the  train,  as  it  wandered 
along  through  green  fields. 

They  were  at  the  heat  of  their  argument,  when 
suddenly  and  without  warning  they  plunged  into 
a  long  dark  tunnel.  The  smoke  rushed  through 
the  window,  and  a  cinder  flew  into  Polly's  eye,  be- 
fore Bob  had  a  chance  to  pull  down  the  sash. 

"Oh!  ouch,  my  eye,"  she  cried,  "it's  killing 
me!" 

Lois  had  been  speaking  as  they  entered  the  tun- 
nel and  in  consequence  had  her  mouth  open.  She 
swallowed  some  coal  gas  and  was  choking  vio- 
lently. 

"Ger,  ger,  oh,  Bob,  do  something,"  she  wailed 
between  coughs, 
Bob  was  already  making  frantic  stabs  at  Polly's 


The  Summer  Begins  81 

eye.  He  turned  and  gave  Lois  a  resounding  thump 
on  the  back. 

"Go  get  a  drink,' '  he  ordered,  and  returned  to 
Polly. 

After  a  few  dark  minutes  they  emerged  from 
the  tunnel  and  with  the  light  to  aid  them,  the  cin- 
der was  soon  out. 

"Oh,  thanks,  ever  so  much,  what  a  tiny  speck 
for  me  to  make  such  a  fuss  about,"  Polly  said 
apologetically. 

"That's  all  right,  I  know  how  they  can  hurt. 
I  guess  it  was  a  piece  of  steel.  Besides  you  didn't 
make  much  fuss,"  Bob  replied  consolingly. 

Lois  looked  out  of  the  window.  It  was  one 
thing  to  have  Bob  and  Polly  like  each  other,  but 
to  have  them  like  each  other  to  the  complete  ex- 
clusion of  herself,  even  when  she  was  choking,  was 
another.  She  kept  a  half  injured,  half  joking 
silence  until  they  reached  New  Haven,  then  the 
prospect  of  meeting  Betty  caused  her  to  forget 
her  minute  of  jealousy. 

"We  have  fifteen  minutes  to  wait,"  said  Bob 
as  they  stepped  to  the  platform. 

"Let's  stay  out  here,  it's  so  awfully  hot  in 
that  waiting  room,"  Lois  suggested.  "Give  me  a 
penny,  Bob,  I  want  to  get  weighed. 

They  spent  the  time  until  Betty's  arrival  in 
trying  all  the  weighing  machines  in  the  station, 
and  wandering  up  and  down.    When  the  an- 


82  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


nouncer  called  the  incoming  train  from  New  York 
they  took  up  their  positions  at  different  parts  of 
the  station,  so  as  not  to  miss  her. 

It  was  not  until  Bob,  who  was  watching  oppo- 
site the  parlor  car  section,  saw  a  girl  dressed  in 
brown  linen,  followed  by  a  porter  with  bags,  look- 
ing dazedly  around,  that  he  realized  that  he  did 
not  know  Betty.  He  had  probably  seen  her  on  his 
visit  to  Lois,  but  he  would  never  recognize  her 
here. 

He  was  panic  sticken,  Lois  and  Polly  seemed 
miles  away  down  the  platform,  and  in  the  mean- 
time, the  girl  in  brown  was  looking  awfully  puz- 
zled and  consulting  with  the  porter.  Taking  his 
courage  in  both  hands — for  it  takes  courage  for 
a  seventeen  year  old  boy  to  march  boldly  up  to  a 
strange  girl  of  fourteen  and  ask  her  if  she  is 
Betty. 

But  Bob  did  it. 

He  lifted  his  hat  and  asked  in  rather  a  meek 
voice : 

< ' Isn't  this  Betty!" 

The  girl  in  brown  turned  suddenly.  Bob  no- 
ticed she  had  freckles  on  her  nose,  and  this  reas- 
sured him. 

"  Yes,  it  is,  and  you  must  be  Bob.  Oh,  but  I  am 
glad  you're  here;  I  was  scared  to  death  at  the 
thought  of  changing  cars." 


The  Summer  Begins 


83 


Bob  sighed  his  relief,  and  taking  her  bags  from 
the  porter  said: 

"Fine,  I  wasn't  perfectly  sure  it  was  you,  but 
I  thought  I'd  take  a  chance.  Lois  and  Polly  are 
here  too,  they  are  waiting  for  you  at  the  other  end 
of  the  platform." 

After  looking  aimlessly  about  for  five  minutes, 
Polly  and  Lois  were  located,  and  then  such  a  flurry 
of  excitement  and  welcoming. 

"Bet,  you  dear." 

"Lo,  I'm  so  glad  to  see  you." 

"Poll,  I  could  eat  you." 

"It's  wonderful  to  have  you  here." 

"I'm  so  glad  you  met  me." 

"By  the  way,  how  did  Bob  know  you?"  Lois  de- 
manded. 

Bob,  who  had  been  out  of  it,  and  a  little  embar- 
rassed at  all  this  kissing,  replied : 
"I  didn't,  I  just  took  a  chance." 
"But  suppose — 
"Oh,  but  it  was — 

"I  wish  it  hadn't  been  Betty,"  Polly  said  mis- 
chievously. 

The  train  for  home  did  not  leave  for  two  hours 
and  a  half,  and  they  spent  the  time  looking  at  the 
college  buildings.  Betty  went  into  ecstasies  over 
the  beautiful  green. 

"Wait  till  you  see  our  green/9  Lois  told  her, 


84  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

' • it's  a  thousand  times  more  adorable  than  this." 

But  Betty  insisted  it  couldn't  be.  They  had 
luncheon  at  the  Taft,  and  loitered  so  long  over  it 
that  they  had  to  make  a  frantic  rush  for  the  train. 

Tim  met  them  at  the  station.  They  drove  up 
the  hill,  all  talking  at  once.  They  were  in  such 
good  spirits,  and  Betty's  questions  were  so  merry 
that  they  passed  the  haunted  house  without  giv- 
ing it  a  glance.  Had  they  looked,  they  would  have 
seen  a  small  figure  in  white  watch  them  pass  and 
then  walk  dejectedly  up  the  tangled  and  untidy 
path. 

It  was  not  until  a  couple  of  hours  later,  when 
the  party  was  seated  on  the  lawn  waiting  for  the 
dinner  gong,  that  Betty,  noticing  the  scar — now 
almost  healed — on  Lois'  cheek,  brought  the  subject 
to  mind  and  Lois  told  her  about  the  upset.  Betty 
was  as  thrilled  as  they  had  expected,  and  insisted 
on  hearing  the  smallest  detail. 

1 1 Where  is  this  house,  did  we  pass  it?"  she  de- 
manded. 

"Yes,  but  we  were  so  busy  talking  I  forgot  to 
show  it  to  you.    It's  next  this  one." 

"We  can  see  it  from  the  end  of  the  barn,"  Lois 
said. 

Betty  hesitated. 

"Shall  I  see  it  now,  or  shall  I  wait  for  moon- 
light? Jemima,  I  guess  I'd  better  see  it  in  day- 
light first  and  get  used  to  it,"  she  ended  in  a  laugh. 


The  Summer  Begins 


85 


"Come  on,  Lo."    Together  they  ran  down  to- 
ward the  end  of  the  lawn. 
Bob  turned  to  Polly. 

"How  about  seeing  the  dog's,"  he  suggested. 
"Excuse  us,  won't  you,  Mother?" 

"Of  course,  dear,  go  along." 

As  they  walked  away  Mrs.  Farwell  smiled  and 
added  to  herself :  "Well,  I  needn't  have  worried 
about  Betty  making  an  odd  number.  If  she  does 
go  off  with  Lois,  Polly  won't  lack  for  company  as 
long  as  Bob's  here." 


CHAPTER  VI 


UNCLE  CY's  LOBSTER  POTS 

Bob  left  Monday  morning  and  the  girls  saw  him 
off  at  the  station.  He  waited  for  the  train,  one 
foot  on  the  cart  step,  his  arm  resting  on  the  basket 
top,  and  a  look  on  his  face  that  Lois  described  as 
positively  hopeless.  They  all  did  their  best  to 
cheer  him  np  and  make  light  of  the  coming  exam- 
ination, which  was  a  Latin  one  and  therefore  to 
be  dreaded.  Lois  alone  was  inclined  to  be  pessi- 
mistic. 

"I  always  flunk  Latin,  or  else  just  get  through 
by  the  skin  of  my  teeth,' '  she  said,  hopelessly. 
"And  of  course  a  college  entrance  must  be  fear- 
fully stiff." 

"Jemima,  Lo,  don't  be  so  cheerful,"  Betty  said. 
"I  never  heard  anything  so  encouraging,  it's 
enough  to  make  Bob  hand  in  an  empty  paper." 

"I  might  as  well,"  growled  poor  Bob;  "that 
would  be  better  than  handing  in  one  that  was  all 
wrong.  I'm  in  a  pretty  state,  my  hands  are  like 
ice  already.  My  teeth  will  probably  chatter  the 
minute  the  Prof  hands  me  the  paper." 

Bob  was  jesting,  of  course,  but  he  hoped  under 

86 


Uncle  Cy's  Lobster  Pots  87 


the  jest  his  real  worry  would  touch  Polly  and 
make  her  show  some  signs  of  sympathy.  She  had 
been  sitting  in  the  corner  of  the  cart,  her  back  al- 
most turned  to  him,  and  the  busy  way  she  was 
flicking  the  flies  off  Banker's  back  was  enough  to 
irritate  a  boy  less  used  to  attention  than  Bob. 
His  remark,  however,  made  no  impression. 

"What  happens  if  you  do  flunk? "  Betty  asked. 

"I  have  to  make  it  up  my  first  year  in  college." 

"Well,  that  wouldn't  be  so  bad;  you  could  work 
extra  hard,"  Lois  said. 

"Thanks,  I've  no  doubt  I  could,  but  who  wants 
to  work  extra  hard  their  freshman  year? " 

They  heard  a  shrill  whistle. 

"Here  comes  my  train,  good-by,  I  go  to  be 
flunked."  And  Bob  picked  up  his  bag  with  one 
hand  and  extended  the  other. 

"What  a  silly  way  to  talk,"  Polly  spoke  all  of  a 
sudden.  "You  know  perfectly  well  you'll  get 
through,"  and  she  shook  his  hand  so  decidedly, 
that  Bob  felt  it  was  sort  of  foolish  to  fuss  about 
an  exam,  especially  before  a  lot  of  girls. 

"I  guess  you're  right,  Polly.  Anyway,  wish 
me  luck,  good-by." 

"Good-by." 

"Good-by." 

"Good-by." 

And  he  was  gone. 

Polly  turned  Banker's  head  towards  home. 


88  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

"What  shall  we  dor'  she  asked. 

i  6  Stop  for  the  mail  first.  I  want  to  show  Betty 
Miss  Hemingway's  house.  I  told  her  all  about 
her  call  last  night,  when  you  and  Bob  were  at  the 
barn, ' '  Lois  said  teasingly. 

"Oh,  do,  I  bet  after  Lois'  description  I  can  pick 
it  out." 

Polly,  after  a  good  deal  of  persuasion,  forced 
Banker  to  take  the  road  to  the  village. 

"Now  that  Bob's  gone,  we  can  really  talk," 
Lois  said.  "Do  you  know  any  school  news, 
Bet?" 

"Yes,  do  tell  us,"  Polly  urged.  "Have  you 
heard  from  Angela  and  Connie?" 

"Of  course,  you  see,  at  the  hotel  I  didn't  have 
anything  else  to  do  but  write  letters,  and  I  wrote 
Ange  reams  one  day.  She  was  so  surprised  that 
she  answered  straight  off.  She  and  Connie  are 
going  to  camp  the  first  of  July  somewhere  up  in 
Pennsylvania.  Connie  wrote  that  she  knew  she 
wouldn't  like  it,  that  that  part  of  the  country  was 
full  of  snakes  and  man  eating  flies.  Ange  drew  a 
picture  of  a  large  black  snake  chasing  Connie  up 
the  side  of  a  cliff.  I  brought  it  with  me  to  show 
you." 

" Heard  from  anybody  else;  didn't  you  write 
the  Spartan!"  Polly  asked. 

"Eh, — oh,  yes,  every  single  day,  in  Latin,  too." 
Betty  chuckled  at  the  idea.    "Just  imagine  the 


Uncle  Cy's  Lobster  Pots 


89 


Spartan's  face  if  she  got  a  letter  from  me.  I  did 
see  Florence  Guile  though,  in  Xew  York,  before 
we  went  to  the  country.  Wasn't  it  tough  luck 
about  Louise?" 

"What  about  her?"  demanded  Polly  and  Lois 
in  one  breath. 

' 'TThy,  don't  you  know  ? ' '  Betty's  surprise  was 
apparent  in  her  voice. 

"No,  tell  us  quick." 

"Well,  don't  get  excited,  she's  better  now.  She 
had  an  attack  of  appendicitis  a  week  after  she  left 
school,  and  had  to  have  an  operation.  Florence 
said  she  was  awfully  ill,  Of  course  I  thought 
you 'd  know. ' ' 

Polly  and  Lois  exchanged  glances  that  seemed  to 
say:  "That  accounts  for  it,"  but  they  were 
spared  explaining  to  Betty,  by  arriving  at  the 
post  office.  As  they  drew  up  to  the  carriage  block, 
they  saw  an  old  man,  brown  and  weather  beaten, 
his  scanty,  sunburned  hair  covered  by  a  dilapi- 
dated captain's  cap ;  he  was  wearing  a  ragged  pair 
of  khaki  trousers  that  were  stuffed  into  high  boots. 
He  was  standing  by  the  hitching  post  and  was 
carrying  a  market  basket  filled  with  lobsters. 

Polly  recognized  him  and  gave  a  cry  of  pleas- 
ure. "Hello,  Uncle  Cy,"  she  called.  "How  are 
you?" 

Uncle  Cy,  or  to  give  the  title  he  loved  best,  Cap- 
tain Cy,  looked  up  and  whistled,  "Waal  I  want 


90  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


to  know,"  he  ejaculated,  "if  it  isn't  Miss  Polly. 
Nobody's  told  me  you  was  back." 

"I  haven't  been,  very  long,  and  I  haven't  had 
a  bit  of  time  to  go  down  and  see  you.  These  are 
my  friends,  Miss  Lois  and  Miss  Betty.  This  is 
Captain  Cy,  one  of  my  oldest  friends." 

The  captain  shook  hands  all  round  and  beamed 
on  them. 

"I  want  to  know!"  he  said  again. 

"How  is  the  lobster  business  this  year?  That 
looks  like  a  fair  haul,"  Polly  pointed  to  the  basket. 

"Them,  h'm,  there's  only  five  there,  and  I  pulled 
twenty  pots  to  get  'em." 

Polly  shook  her  head  sympathetically. 

"Uncle  Cy,  won't  you  take  us  lobstering  some 
day?  I  know  my  friends  would  be  crazy  about  it, 
and  you  know  how  much  I  love  it,"  she  said 
eagerly. 

"Why,  shucks,  of  course  I  will,  you  don't  have 
to  ask  me  that.   When  d'you  want  to  go?" 

"Oh,  to-day  please,"  exclaimed  Betty.  "Je- 
mima, what  a  lark ! ' ' 

"Have  you  pulled  to-day?"  Polly  asked. 

Uncle  Cy  looked  as  if  his  feelings  were  hurt. 

"You  sure  have  changed  considerable,  Miss 
Polly,"  he  said,  reproachfully,  "or  you'd  know  the 
tide  won't  be  high  till  half  past  one."  He  turned 
to  Betty,  "I'll  take  you  to-day  sure,  glad  to  have 
company,"  he  said. 


Uncle  Cy's  Lobster  Pots  91 


"Oh,  will  you?  Lordy,  I  hope  it's  rough,  I 
never  fished  for  lobsters.' ' 

Betty  stopped  at  a  loud  chuckle  from  Uncle  Cy. 

"Lan's  sake !  fish  for  'em,  waal  I  never  did  that 
myself." 

"But  how  do  you  catch  them?"  Betty  looked 
bewildered. 

' ' Best  thing  to  do  is  to  come  and  see.  Ain't 
that  right,  Miss  Polly?" 

"You  bet.  "We'll  be  at  your  beach  at  a  little 
after  one,  is  that  all  right?"  Polly  said. 

"That's  all  right  fer  me,"  Uncle  Cy  drawled. 
1  'Better  dress  up  warm,  it's  kind  a'  cold  out  by  the 
Mermaid." 

"Will  we  go  as  far  out  as  that?"  Polly  asked 
joyfully. 

6 6  Eeckon  we  will ;  the  little  lady  here  wants  it  to 
be  rough." 

"Oh,  Betty,  how  can  you?"  groaned  Lois.  "I 
know  I'll  die." 

"It  won't  be  as  bad  as  that,"  Polly  assured  her; 
1 i  don 't  worry. ' ' 

"If  you  begin  to  feel  squeamish  we  can  always 
come  back,"  Uncle  Cy  said  wisely.  "Now  I  wish 
you  good-by,  I  gotta  fix  up  my  boat  if  we're  to 
carry  passengers."  And  with  little  appearance 
of  haste,  Uncle  Cy  swung  off  down  the  green. 

Betty  in  the  excitement  of  anticipation  had  said 
that  pulling  lobster  pots  would  be  a  lark,  but  it 


92  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

was  not  until  they  were  settled  in  Uncle  Cy's  big 
boat  that  she  realized  that  lark  was  not  half  ex- 
pressive enough. 

The  boat  was  a  big  tubby  steam  launch  with 
a  noisy,  greasy  engine.  There  was  plenty  of  room 
to  move  around  and  no  fear  of  falling  out. 

They  left  the  dock  at  a  little  after  one.  Polly 
sat  on  a  pile  of  ropes  and  steered. 

"I  may  have  forgotten  about  the  tides,  Uncle 
Cy,  but  I  haven't  forgotten  the  channel,"  she  said, 
rolling  up  the  sleeves  of  her  middy  blouse. 

Betty  decided,  after  trying  every  part  of  the 
boat,  to  stand  at  the  bow  where  she  could  get  the 
full  benefit  of  the  spray,  and  Lois,  because  she  was 
the  most  timorous  of  the  party,  was  given  the  one 
camp  chair.  It  was  a  big,  comfortable  one  with 
arms ;  it  was  directly  in  front  of  the  bait  box  and 
side  of  the  engine,  and  the  smell  of  dead  fish,  mixed 
with  gasoline  and  oil  made  Lois  feel  very  squeam- 
ish, before  they  had  sighted  the  first  swell. 

Uncle  Cy  was  quite  content  to  leave  the  steering 
to  Polly,  and  busied  himself  with  ropes,  plugs  and 
measuring  sticks,  while  Betty  asked  questions. 

' ' What's  that  long  pole  for,  the  one  with  the 
hook  on  the  end  of  it?"  she  inquired. 

< 'That's  to  pull  the  pots  with,"  Uncle  Cy  told 
her,  opening  a  tin  can  filled  with  small,  wedge 
shaped  pieces  of  wood  as  he  spoke. 


Uncle  Cy's  Lobster  Pots  93 


"Oh,  I  see."    Betty  was  a  little  doubtful. 
' '  Then  what  are  those  for  ? ' ' 
"To  plug  the  lobsters." 
"Do  what  ?    You  're  teasing. ' ' 
Uncle  Cy  laughed. 

"You'd  see  soon  enough  if  I  was  teasing,  if  I 
didn't  plug  'em." 
"Plug  'em  where!" 

"Waal,  I  d'n  know  as  I  can  exactly  tell  you 
where,  but  it's  where  a  human  critter's  wrist 
would  be.  You  put  'em  between  the  j'ints  and 
then  they  can't  nip  you." 

"Does  Polly  know  all  that!"  Betty  inquired. 

"Sure,  she  does.  Miss  Polly  used  to  know  as 
much  about  lobster  pulling  as  I  does  myself. 
Ain't  that  true,  Miss  Polly!" 

"Don't  talk  to  the  man  at  the  wheel,"  Polly  an- 
swered. She  was  standing  erect  now,  looking 
straight  ahead.  There  were  rocks  on  every  side, 
and  it  had  been  over  a  year  since  she  had  steered 
a  boat.  A  minute  later  she  called :  "Look  ahead, 
a  little,  to  the  port  side,  and  you'll  see  some  por- 
poises." 

"Polly,  where!"  Lois  nearly  fell  out  of  her 
chair,  and  Betty  flew  to  the  other  end  of  the  boat. 
Almost  twenty  feet  away,  their  shining  brown 
bodies  rising  and  falling  in  perfect  unison,  were 
two  good  sized  porpoises.   Polly  ran  the  nose  of 


94  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


the  boat  almost  on  them,  before  they  took  fright 
and  swam  away.  Lois'  eyes  sparkled  with  ex- 
citement, all  thoughts  of  sea  sickness  forgotten. 

"Oh,  aren't  they  beautiful?"  she  said; 
"wouldn't  it  be  fun  to  draw  them,  only  they 
wouldn't  stand  still  long  enough." 

"Waal,  now,"  Uncle  Cy  looked  amazed,  "maybe 
you're  right,  but  I  never  did  think  of  them  silly 
things  as  beautiful  before."  He  was  evidently 
impressed  with  the  newness  of  the  idea. 

Betty  noticing  a  piece  of  wood,  shaped  like 
a  cannon  cartridge  and  painted  red  and  black, 
brought  her  mind  back  to  lobsters. 

"What's  that  thing  bobbing  over  there?"  she 
asked.  And  at  the  same  time  Polly  called :  "Bet- 
ter turn  off  the  engine,  Uncle  Cy,  here's  the  first 
pot." 

Then  the  excitement  of  the  day  began.  Polly 
ran  the  boat  as  near  to  the  buoy  as  she  could,  and 
Uncle  Cy  hooked  the  rope  to  which  it  was  at- 
tached with  the  long  pole,  then  he  pulled  in  yards 
of  muddy  rope  until  he  came  to  the  wooden  lob- 
ster trap  with  its  concave  hole,  so  easy  for  a  lob- 
ster to  walk  into,  and  so  impossible  for  him  to 
leave  by.  If  there  were  no  lobsters  inside,  over 
it  went  again,  into  the  water.  This  was  the  case 
with  the  first  one,  but  the  second  proved  more 
fruitful. 

"Oh,  look,  there  are  two  in  it,"  Betty  cried,  as 


Uncle  Cy's  Lobster  Pots  95 


Uncle  Cy  pulled  the  cage  into  the  boat.  "How 
will  you  ever  get  them  out!" 

"This  way,"  and  Uncle  Cy  opened  a  small  door 
at  one  end  and  put  his  hand  in,  quickly  grabbing 
a  lobster  in  the  only  spot  lobsters  can  safely  be 
grabbed.  "Now  let's  see  if  he's  long  enough  to 
keep,"  he  continued.  "If  he's  less  than  four  and 
an  eighth  inches  long,  that's  as  big  as  this  meas- 
ure here,  from  his  nose  to  the  scale  of  his  tail  we 
have  to  throw  him  back.  Yup,  he's  all  right. 
Now  we'll  have  to  plug  him,  Miss  Betty,  see?" 
Uncle  Cy  inserted  the  plugs  and  threw  the  lob- 
sters, now  perfectly  harmless  on  the  floor  of  the 
boat. 

"Now,  let's  see  this  fella.  Nope,  he  ain't  quite 
sizeable  enough  yet." 

"Yes,  he  is,"  Betty  insisted,  "he's  just  a  tiny 
bit  short,  that's  all." 

"A  tiny  bit's  a  tiny  bit,"  Uncle  Cy  replied  and 
back  went  the  lobster. 

"I  don't  see  how  a  fraction  of  an  inch  can  mat- 
ter." 

"Mebbe  not,  but  suppose  I  was  to  go  in  some 
day  and  the  inspector  was  to  meet  me  and  ask  to 
see  my  haul.  Guess  it  would  make  a  difference 
to  me  then.  'Sides  that,"  he  added,  virtuously, 
"it  wouldn't  be  acting  honest  by  the  game  laws. 
There's  some  as  does  it,  but  I  ain't  one  of  them." 

Betty  felt  decidedly  snubbed  and  did  not  ven- 


96  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

ture  to  protest  again  during  the  afternoon. 
Though  it  did  make  her  cross  to  see  all  those  good 
lobsters  thrown  back  for  a  tiny  little  fraction  of 
an  inch. 

They  pulled  forty  pots  and  did  not  reach  home 
until  after  five  o  'clock.  They  had  had  a  glorious 
time  and  were  all  very  much  sunburned.  Lois  had 
objected  at  first  to  the  lobsters  running  around 
the  floor  under  her  feet,  but  Polly  had  assured  her 
of  their  inability  to  bite  by  bravely  offering  her 
finger  to  the  largest  one  there.  Betty  became 
quite  skilled  in  hooking  the  buoys.  When  they 
left  Uncle  Cy  it  was  after  repeated  promises  to 
go  out  again  very  soon. 

At  the  house  they  found  Mrs.  Farwell  dressing 
for  dinner,  and,  regardless  of  their  fishy  clothes 
they  sat  on  her  bed,  and  told  her  all  about  their 
afternoon. 

' 6  Can  you  imagine  anything  more  fun,  Mum- 
sief "  asked  Lois,  when  they  had  finished. 

" Won't  you  go  with  us  some  day,  Mrs.  Far- 
well  f  I  know  you 'd  love  it,  please  say  you  will, ' ' 
Polly  begged. 

"  Very  well,  dearest  child,  I  will  if  you  want  me 
to,"  Mrs.  Farwell  promised.  "And  now  let  me 
tell  you  my  news.  I  had  a  letter  from  Dad,  and 
he  and  Uncle  Roddy  are  coming  up  the  third  of 
July  for  a  week." 

"Hurrah!" 


Uncle  Cy's  Lobster  Pots 


97 


"Oh,  fine!" 

"And  Bob  will  be  here  too." 
The  girls  were  delighted. 

"But  that's  not  all,"  Mrs.  Farwell  continued. 
"I  have  had  company  this  afternoon,  guess  who!" 

"Miss  Hemingway. "  Lois  looked  frightened 
at  the  thought. 

"No,  Mrs.  Hopper,  the  minister's  wife;  she  is 
a  charming  woman. ' ' 

"But  always  exaggerating,"  Lois  interrupted, 
with  a  mischievous  laugh. 

"Lois,  darling,  that  is  not  a  nice  way  to  talk," 
Mrs.  Farwell  reproached  her.  "She  asked  for 
you,  of  course,  Polly,  dear,  and  left  you  her  love. 
She  came  to  tell  me  about  a  cake  sale  they  are  giv- 
ing at  the  church  to-night.  I  promised  her  we 
would  go,  you  don't  mind,  do  you!" 

Lois  groaned. 

Betty  said:    "I  think  it  will  be  fun. 

And  Polly  added :  "Of  course  it  will,  I  Ve  been 
to  dozens  of  them  and  they  really  are  nice.  There 
are  always  lots  of  funny  people  there,  and  the 
cakes  are  simply  wonderful. 

"Better  than  Sarah  can  make!"  Lois  demanded. 

"Oh,  much." 

"Then  they  must  be  worth  going  for.  What 
shall  we  wear?" 

"Nothing  very  elaborate.  I'll  tell  you — all  of 
you  put  on  your  white  sailor  suits  with  the  light 


98  Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

blue  collars  and  ties,"  Mrs.  Farwell  suggested. 

"All  right,  Mumsie  darling,"  Lois  laughed. 
"Do  you  know,  I  think  if  you  could,  you'd  put 
every  girl  in  the  world  in  a  sailor  suit,"  she  added, 
as  they  left  for  their  own  rooms. 

Polly  was  without  doubt  quite  the  most  popu- 
lar person  at  the  sale.  All  the  town's  people  had 
known  her  for  years,  and  were  all  glad  to  welcome 
her  back.  Early  in  the  evening  Miss  Hemingway 
swooped  down  upon  Lois,  who  was  talking  in  a 
corner  with  Betty,  and  insisted  upon  giving  them 
lemonade  and  quantities  of  cake.  Although,  to 
quote  her  own  words :    i  1  None  of  it  was  fit  to  eat. ' ' 

Mrs.  Farwell  bought  so  much  that  Tim  had  to 
be  called  in  to  help  take  the  packages  out  to  the 
carriage,  for  there  were  all  kinds  of  crullers,  gin- 
ger-bread, cookies,  pies  and  cakes  imaginable. 
And  as  each  one  seemed  to  be  a  specialty  of  some 
one  person,  Mrs.  Farwell  dared  not  refuse  any, 
for  fear  of  hurting  some  one's  feelings.  About 
nine  o  'clock,  Polly  found  her  talking  to  a  number 
of  ladies. 

"Do  come  out  for  a  little  while,  the  moon  is 
up,"  she  whispered,  and  as  soon  as  Mrs.  Farwell 
could  get  away,  she  slipped  out  through  a  door 
that  led  to  the  grave  yard. 

"This  isn't  awfully  cheerful,  but  it's  cool," 
Polly  laughed,  as  they  seated  themselves  on  an 


Uncle  Cy's  Lobster  Pots  99 


iron  bench  and  surveyed  the  ghostly  white  tomb- 
stones. 

"Do  yon  know  what  Bob  is  going  to  do,  Mrs. 
Farwell?"  Polly  asked  after  a  minute  of  silence. 

"No,  dear,  but  I  felt  sure  you  two  had  some 
sort  of  a  secret,"  Mrs.  Farwell  answered. 

"Well,  I'll  tell  you,  but  you  must  promise  not 
to  say  a  word  to  Lo  or  Betty."  And  Polly  con- 
fided the  plan  that  she  and  Bob  had  made,  the 
first  night  of  his  visit. 

Half  an  hour  later,  Lois  found  them  still  in  the 
same  place. 

"Here  you  are  at  last,  aren't  you  most  ready  to 
go  home  ? ' '  she  asked.  ' i  Betty  and  I  are  so  sleepy 
it  hurts." 

"Yes,  dear,  of  course,  I'd  no  idea  it  was  so 
late."  Mrs.  Farwell  started  for  the  church. 
"Polly  and  I  have  had  such  a  splendid  talk." 

When  they  were  all  in  the  carriage,  and  on  their 
way  home,  Lois  turned  from  her  seat  beside  Tim. 

"I'd  like  to  know  what  you  and  mother  were 
talking  about  all  that  time, ' '  she  said. 

Polly  chuckled. 

' 1  She  '11  never  know,  will  she,  Aunt  Kate  ? ' '  she 
asked. 

"Aunt  Kate."  Lois  looked  surprised,  then 
pleased. 

"That  sounds  as  if  it  were  names,"  she  said. 


CHAPTER  VII 


POLLY  AND  BOB  CONSPIRE 

"  What  do  you  suppose  is  the  matter  with  Poll, 
this  morning?  She's  so  excited  and  mysterious," 
Lois  inquired.  She  and  Betty  were  on  the  ter- 
race. It  was  the  day  before  the  Fourth  of  July 
and  they  had  just  finished  luncheon. 

"I  don't  know;  she  hasn't  been  near  us  all  day; 
perhaps  she's  excited  because  Uncle  Eoddy  is 
coming,"  Betty  answered. 

"No,  it's  not  that.  She  has  something  up  her 
sleeve.  She's  out  in  the  barn  now  talking  to 
Tim."   Lois  was  frankly  curious. 

"Let's  hunt  her  up." 

"No,  she  wouldn't  like  that.  Let's  go  see  if 
mother  has  started  for  the  station  to  meet  Dad, 
and  Uncle  Eoddy." 

"Is  Bob  coming  on  the  same  train!" 

"No,  not  till  the  four  forty-nine.  Isn't  it  too 
bad  he  couldn't  bring  any  boys  with  him?  I'll 
bet  he  didn't  try  very  hard." 

A  letter  from  Bob,  saying  that  it  was  impos- 
sible to  find  any  fellows  who  were  not  already 
engaged  for  over  the  Fourth,  had  arrived  two  days 

100 


Polly  and  Bob  Conspire  101 


before.  Lois  and  Betty  had  been  loud  in  their 
regrets,  but  Polly,  for  some  reason  or  other,  had 
taken  the  news  in  the  most  matter  of  fact  way. 

"Oh,  mother  dear,"  Lois  called  as  she  entered 
the  front  hall,  "where  are  yon?" 

"Here,  darling."  Mrs.  Farwell  appeared  in 
the  library  door,  her  hat  and  coat  on. 

"I've  been  looking  for  yon,  Lois;  I  want  you 
and  Betty  to  do  something  for  me." 

"Yes?" 

"Will  yon  go  down  to  Mrs.  Tomkins  and  get 
an  extra  pint  of  cream?  I  hate  to  bother  yon, 
bnt  yon  see  Tim  has  to  drive  to  the  station,  and 
Sarah  can't  spare  any  one  from  the  honse." 

"Of  course,  we'll  go."  Betty  was  delighted  at 
the  idea.  "I'm  simply  crazy  to  meet  Mrs.  Tom- 
kins  and  to  see  her  funny  house." 

Lois,  however,  was  not  quite  so  anxious. 

"It's  fearfully  hot,  Mother  dear;  can't  we  go 
in  the  cart,  and  isn't  Polly  to  go  with  us  ? " 

Mrs.  Farwell  hesitated  for  just  a  minute. 

"TVhy,  I  believe  there  is  something  the  matter 
with  the  cart.  Isn't  the  door  off? — and  Polly 
can't  go;  she's  busy  doing  something  for  me." 

"Oh,  come  on,  Lo,"  Betty  urged;  "we  can  walk 
through  the  woods,  and  it  won't  be  so  hot." 

"That's  right,  Betty;  make  her  go.  She's 
been  out  in  the  cart  so  much  that  she's  forgotten 
how  to  walk;  it  will  do  her  good." 


102         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

"Oh,  all  right;  do  you  want  me  to  bring  home 
the  cream! "  Lois  asked,  with  a  resigned  sigh. 

"Yes,  dear,  please.  Sarah  cannot  start  the  ice 
cream  until  she  gets  it,  so  do  hurry  up;  I'll  tell 
Polly  where  youVe  gone." 

Mrs.  Farwell  pushed  them  gently  through  the 
door,  and  watched  them  down  the  drive.  She 
smiled  to  herself  as  a  sentence  of  Lois'  floated 
back  to  her.    It  was : 

"Bet,  I  wonder  what  it  is  that  Poll  is  doing  for 
mother." 

After  they  had  turned  into  the  woods,  and  were 
quite  out  of  sight  of  the  house,  Mrs.  Farwell  hur- 
ried to  the  barn. 

"Polly,"  she  called,  "they  are  gone." 

"Do  you  think  they  suspected  anything?"  Polly 
asked. 

She  was  adjusting  Banker's  bit;  he  was  hitched 
to  the  cart,  the  door  of  which  was  quite  unbroken. 

"Lois  did;  she  wanted  to  know  why  you  were 
not  coming." 

"You  don't  think  she  guessed!" 

"Oh,  dear,  no;  she  has  no  idea;  I  told  her  you 
were  doing  something  else,  for  me." 

"Oh,  fine.  Hadn't  we  better  go!  There's  not 
much  time;  Tim  has  started  with  the  carriage." 

Polly  was  so  excited  that  she  danced  through 
the  rest  of  the  preparations,  and  started  Banker 
down  the  hill  at  a  breakneck  speed. 


Polly  and  Bob  Conspire  103 


They  reached  the  station  just  as  the  train  pulled 
in,  and  Polly  and  Mrs.  Farwell  hurried  to  the 
platform. 

" There's  Bob,"  Polly  cried  excitedly,  "and 
there's  Uncle  Eoddy.  Oh,  do  be  careful,' '  she 
added  as  Bob  swung  himself  to  the  ground  be- 
fore the  train  had  really  stopped.  He  was  fol- 
lowed by  Mr.  Pendleton,  Dr.  Farwell  and  two  boys 
of  about  his  own  age. 

Polly  rushed  first  to  Uncle  Eoddy.  "Oh,  I'm 
glad  to  see  you,"  she  said,  kissing  and  hugging 
him.    "How  do  you  do,  Dr.  Farwell?" 

Everybody  began  talking  at  once,  and  the  two 
guests  were  introduced  all  around.  One  was  a 
Mr.  Boss,  otherwise  known  as  Curly,  on  account 
of  his  hair.  He  was  short,  fat  and  jolly  look- 
ing. The  other  one  was  Betty's  red-headed  hero. 
His  name  was  Kichard  Saxon,  and  to  Polly,  with 
the  memory  of  him  as  he  had  appeared  that  day 
on  the  river,  it  was  a  disappointment  to  find  him 
a  shy  awkward  boy.  She  sighed  with  relief  when 
she  saw  he  did  not  remember  her.  It  was  so 
much  the  better  for  their  plan. 

"You  and  Mr.  Pendleton  come  with  me  in  the 
carriage,  dear,"  Mrs.  Farwell  said  to  the  doctor, 
after  the  babble  had  subsided.  "Polly  will  drive 
the  boys  in  the  cart;  Lois  and  Betty  don't  know 
they  are  coming.  This  is  a  scheme  of  Bob's  and 
Polly's." 


104         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

This  arrangement  completed,  Polly  started  to 
follow  Tim,  but  Bob  put  bis  band  on  tbe  reins. 

" Don't  let's  go  straigbt  borne  the  sbort  way," 
be  said.  " Can't  we  go  through  tbe  village;  there 
must  be  mail  or  something  to  get." 

Polly  smiled,  turned  Banker  around,  and  started 
him  on  a  trot  down  the  village  road,  while  Curly 
and  Dick  looked  respectfully  at  Bob. 

"We  won't  get  the  other's  dust,  this  way," 
Polly  said,  touching  Banker  with  the  whip. 

"How  are  the  dogs?"  Bob  asked  after  a  min- 
ute, just  for  something  to  say. 

"Jill  hurt  her  foot,  but  the  rest  are  fine.  Sandy 
will  be  wild  when  he  sees  you,"  Polly  answered. 

"I'll  bet  he's  forgotten  me." 

"Well,  I  know  he  hasn't;  Sandy  never  forgets 
anybody  he  once  likes. ' '  Polly  was  aroused  to  de- 
fend her  darling's  loyalty. 

"Who  is  Sandy?"  Curly  asked,  "or  rather — I 
know  he's  a  dog,  but  what  kind!" 

"Hje's  a  great  big  collie  that  belongs  to  Polly," 
Bob  explained.  "And  he  really  does  belong  to 
her;  he  follows  her  like  a  shadow." 

They  continued  to  talk  about  dogs  until  the 
Post  Office  was  reached.  Bob  went  in  for  the  mail 
and  Polly  got  out  to  kill  a  horse  fly  that  was  driv- 
ing Banker  crazy.  Getting  back  in  the  cart  again 
Bob  had  time  to  whisper : 

1 '  Does  Betty  know  1 ' '   Polly  shook  her  head. 


Polly  and  Bob  Conspire 


105 


"Not  even  a  suspicion, "  she  whispered. 

"Good  for  yon,  Dick  doesn't  either;  it  onght  to 
be  f nn  when  they  meet. ' 9 

Conversation  on  the  way  home  lagged;  Polly 
had  a  cold  sensation  abont  her  heart.  These  boys 
were  not  nearly  as  nice  as  Bob,  and  if  they  never 
intended  talking  any  more  than  they  had  so  far, 
what,  oh  what!  was  to  become  of  the  house  party? 

As  they  turned  in  the  drive,  they  saw  that  the 
rest  of  the  family  were  sitting  on  the  lawn,  evi- 
dently waiting  for  them. 

"Quick,  Polly,  before  they  see  us,"  whispered 
Bob. 

Polly  touched  Banker  with  the  whip,  and  they 
dashed  around  the  corner,  and  up  to  the  carriage 
block  with  a  flourish. 

Polly  led  them  through  the  house  and  out  of  one 
of  the  living-room  windows  right  into  the  tea- 
party.  The  surprise  was  as  great  a  success  as  the 
two  conspirators  could  wish. 

Lois  was  sharing  some  cookies  with  Jack  and 
Jill,  who  had  been  admitted  at  Uncle  Koddy's  re- 
quest, and  Betty,  who  was  hot  after  her  walk,  was 
drinking  quantities  of  lemonade.  The  conse- 
quence was,  that  on  seeing  Bob  and  Polly  with 
two  strange  boys,  they  both  choked. 

"Why,  Mother,  who  are — "  Lois  sputtered — 
she  hardly  had  time  to  recover  before  Polly  was 
beside  her. 


106         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

"Lois,  may  I  present  Mr.  Ross  and  Mr. 
Saxon  ?"  she  said,  with  the  airs  of  a  queen,  and 
completely  ignoring  the  fact  that  she  was  say- 
ing anything  surprising.  "This  is  Lois,  Bob's 
sister;  this  is  Betty  Thompson." 

Bob  could  not  help  adding,  as  Betty  and  the 
red-headed  boy  shook  hands : 

"Haven't  you  two  met  before?" 

Lois  managed  to  say  something,  but  Betty 
stared  speechless  at  Dick  Saxon. 

"Lordy,"  she  gasped.  "The  red  headed  boy! 
Oh,  excuse  me,"  she  stammered,  hopelessly. 

Dick's  face  got  as  red  as  his  hair. 

"Why,  er,  you're  the  girl  I  pulled  out  of  the 
river,"  he  said. 

There  was  an  embarrassed  silence  for  a  minute, 
and  then  Curly  burst  out  laughing. 

"Can't  you  see  it's  a  put  up  game?  Old  Bob 
knew  all  about  it,"  he  said. 

They  all  joined  in  the  laughter,  even  Doctor  and 
Mrs.  Farwell,  and  Uncle  Roddy,  who  had  been 
amused  spectators  up  to  this  time.  Mrs.  Far- 
well,  taking  pity  on  Betty's  flaming  cheeks,  poured 
out  extra  glasses  of  lemonade  and  turned  the  con- 
versation to  more  general  subjects.  With  the 
gentle  tact  always  at  her  command  she  made  them 
all  feel  delightfully  at  ease,  and  there  were  no 
more  embarrassing  moments. 

An  hour  later,  when  they  had  all  gone  to  their 


Polly  and  Bob  Conspire 


107 


rooms  to  dress  for  dinner,  Lois  and  Betty  slipped 
into  Polly's  room  to  talk  over  the  new  arrivals. 

"Well,  now  we  know  why  Poll  was  so  awfully 
mysterious, ' '  Lois  said.  "Of  all  the  crafty 
wretches.  Betty  and  I  knew  something  was  up, 
but  of  course  we  never  thought  of  this." 

Polly  put  her  arm  affectionately  around  Betty. 
"You're  not  cross,  are  you,  Bet?  Bob  and  I 
thought  it  would  be  such  fun. ' ' 

"Lordy,  no,"  laughed  Betty.  "I  think  it's  fun 
myself,  but,  oh,  Polly,  I  almost  died  when  I  saw 
him." 

"I  should  think  you  would  have,"  Lois  inter- 
rupted. ' i  The  idea  of  calling  him  the  red  headed 
boy." 

"Wasn't  it  awful,  but  you  know  we  always 
called  him  that  at  school. ' ' 

"I  don't  believe  he  noticed  it."  Polly  was  try- 
ing to  be  consoling. 

"How  do  you  like  him?" 

"Not  as  much  as  I  always  thought  I  would," 
Betty  said  honestly. 

"Why,  Bet,  did  you  ever  think  you'd  meet 
him?" 

"Well,  not  exactly  that."  Betty  wriggled  on 
her  seat  by  the  window.  "But  of  course,  after 
lie  had  pulled  me  out  of  the  river — I,  well,  natu- 
rally wondered  what  he  was  like,  and —  Well, 
I  didn't  think  he  was  like  this,"  she  added  lamely. 


108         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


"Wait."  Lois  looked  Sphinx  like,  in  her  white 
silk  wrapper.  "It  isn't  fair  to  judge  them  yet. 
Boys  are  always  slow  at  first,  but  when  they  get 
used  to  things,  they  sort  of  wake  up — " 

"Curly,  oh  bother,  I  mean  Mr.  Eoss,  doesn't 
seem  to  be  able  to  do  anything  but  laugh/ '  Betty 
said,  dolefully. 

"Well,  your  red-headed  boy  doesn't  even  do 
that,"  Lois  retorted,  with  more  resentment  than 
the  occasion  demanded.  She  had  taken  rather  a 
fancy  to  the  tubby  Mr.  Ross. 

"What  will  we  do  with  them  to-night?"  Polly 
asked  hopelessly.  She  paused,  holding  her  white 
ivory  brush  against  her  dark  hair,  the  picture  of 
distress. 

6  '  Walk, ' '  Lois  replied  with  decision.  1 '  Nothing 
makes  boys  forget  their  shyness  like  walking." 

Acting  on  Lois '  idea,  Betty  suggested  a  walk  to 
the  water  after  dinner. 

They  started  off.  Polly  and  Bob  were  first; 
they  had  Sandy  between  them,  and  Bob  threw 
sticks  for  him  to  chase.  Lois  and  Curly  kept  up 
with  them  and  it  was  not  long  before  their  com- 
mon knowledge  of  Bob  and  school  gave  them  a 
topic  of  conversation  to  break  the  first  restraint. 
As  if  by  mutual  consent,  Betty  had  been  left  to 
Dick.  They  loitered  behind  the  rest,  both  very 
awkward  and  uncomfortable. 

It  was  the  most  beautiful  evening.    The  air 


Polly  and  Bob  Conspire  109 

was  soft  and  heavy  with  the  scent  of  roses. 
Ahead  Sandy's  excited  bark  or  Curly 's  hearty 
laugh  came  back  to  them.  It  was  a  perfect  set- 
ting for  companionship.  "But,"  as  Betty  de- 
scribed it  afterwards,  "he  wouldn't  say  anything 
but  yes  or  no."  Finally  they  broke  a  silence  that 
had  lasted  for  fully  five  minutes. 

"Jemima!"  Betty  said  desperately,  "don't  you 
ever  talk  more  than  this  ? ' ' 

"What!"  stammered  Dick,  taken  quite  by  sur- 
prise. 

"What  d'ye  mean?" 

"Don't  you  ever  say  anything;  do  you  always 
just  answer  questions  with  yes  or  no?" 

Betty,  once  her  hand  had  touched  the  plow,  even 
the  plow  of  condemnation  was  not  one  to  turn 
back. 

"I've  talked  till  I'm  hoarse,  and  I  can't  get 
anything  out  of  you.  Lordy,  you  're  awful. ' '  She 
finished  with  spirit. 

Dick  looked  at  her,  first  incredulous,  then 
amazed.  To  be  seventeen,  or  almost  seventeen, 
and  have  a  freckled  faced,  snub  nosed  girl,  with 
her  hair  down  her  back,  call  you  names,  was  too 
much.  He  sputtered.  Why  she  was  just  a  child ; 
the  thought  was  comforting,  he  clung  to  it.  And 
rather  a  peevish  child  too.  Dick,  despite  his  lack 
of  conversational  ability,  had  a  sense  of  humor. 
He  was  nearly  six  feet  tall,  and  heavily  built. 


110 


Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


Betty  was  small  and  slender.  Suddenly  lie  was 
reminded  of  an  enraged  kitten  he  had  seen  the 
day  before.  He  began  to  laugh,  and  laughed  and 
laughed  and  laughed.  It  was  Betty's  turn  now  to 
be  surprised. 

"Well,  thank  goodness,' '  she  said  after  a  min- 
ute, but  she  looked  a  little  hurt.  When  they 
joined  the  others,  on  the  big  flat  rock  near  the 
water,  they  were  both  laughing,  but  there  was  an 
unspoken  understanding  of  an  existing  feud  be- 
tween them. 

"Come  along,  slow  pokes/ '  Lois  greeted  them. 
"Sit  down." 

Betty  and  Dick  dropped  down  on  the  rock,  com- 
pleting the  circle. 

"We  look  like  a  band  of  Indians,  ready  for  a 
pow-wow, ' '  Bob  said. 

"All  we  need  is  a  camp  fire  and  some  marsh- 
mallows,'  '  Curly  added,  smacking  his  lips. 

"We  have  a  rock  like  this  at  school,"  Polly 
said.  "Only  it's  not  near  the  water.  We've  had 
some  wonderful  picnics  there,  roasted  potatoes 
and  bacon." 

"Oh,  don't,"  Curly  beseeched.  His  voice 
sounded  so  heartfelt  that  they  all  laughed. 

"Are  you  still  hungry,  Mr.  Ross?"  Polly  in- 
quired. 

"Hungry?  Of  course  he's  hungry;  Curly 's  al- 
ways hungry,"  Dick  cut  in.    "It  doesn't  mean 


Polly  and  Bob  Conspire  111 


anything.  Look  at  the  huge  dinner  he  ate  to- 
night." 

"Oh,  let  up."  Curly  was  becoming  embar- 
rassed again,  and  turning  to  Polly  he  added: 
"I  wish  you  wouldn't  call  me  Mr.  Eoss;  I  can't 
get  used  to  it." 

' 1  That's  what  I  say,  let's  cut  out  the  Miss  and 
Mister,"  Dick  said  eagerly. 

"All  right,"  Lois  and  Polly  agreed.  "It's 
Dick,  Curly  and  Bob,  Polly,  Betty  and  Lois  from 
now  on." 

A  sigh  of  satisfaction  ran  all  around  the  cir- 
cle, and  the  silence  that  followed  was  long  enough 
to  give  Dick  a  chance  to  wonder  why  Betty  had 
not  agreed  with  the  rest. 

"And  now  what  about  plans  for  to-morrow?" 
Polly  asked.    "There's  not  much  to  do." 

"Can  we  swim?"  Curly  asked. 

"Yes,  it's  great  off  this  rock,  but  the  water's 
awfully  cold, ' '  Lois  told  him. 

"Oh,  fine,  then  let's  swim." 

"We  can't  swim  all  day."  Polly  spoke  to  Bob, 
rather  than  in  answer  to  Curly. 

"Why  not  have  a  picnic,"  he  suggested. 

"Let's,"  chorused  every  one. 

"Oh,  roast  potatoes  and  bacon,"  Curly  gloated. 

"Yes,  do  let's  have  a  picnic." 

"Where  will  we  go?"   It  was  Dick  who  asked. 

"Oh,  there's  dozens  of  places,"  Polly  replied, 


112         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

' '  only  we  want  to  be  sure  and  go  somewhere  where 
we  won't  meet  a  church  society.' ' 

"Oh,  gee!"  Curly  showed  signs  of  terror. 
"Don't  let's  get  into  one  of  those;  I  went  to  one 
once ;  it  was  awful. ' ' 

Everybody  laughed  at  his  fears,  and  then  Betty 
said,  yawning: 

"Oh,  Jemima,  I'm  sleepy;  let's  start  back." 

"But  not  the  same  way.  Isn't  there  a  road 
along  the  water  that  cuts  up  the  hill  and  lands  in 
your  grounds!"    Bob  appealed  to  Polly  as  usual. 

"Yes,  it  takes  longer,  but  it's  rather  nice;  we 
pass  Captain  Cy's  cottage.  If  he's  not  in  bed  I'll 
introduce  you  to  him,"  Polly  told  them. 

"Perhaps  he'll  take  you  lobstering,  it's  lots  of 
fun,"  Lois  said,  and  as  they  walked  along  she  de- 
scribed the  lobster  cars  and  talked  with  such  ease 
and  apparent  knowledge,  that  Polly  and  Betty  ex- 
changed glances  of  surprise  and  refrained  from 
telling  of  her  first  fright. 

The  road  rambled  along  under  drooping  willow 
trees.  It  led  eventually  to  Mr.  "Wiggins',  the  boat- 
maker.  Bob  and  Polly  lingered  behind  the  others 
and  as  they  came  in  sight  of  the  dock,  they  saw 
Uncle  Eoddy  talking  with  Mr.  Wiggins.  His  back 
was  towards  them;  he  apparently  did  not  hear 
their  voices.  Polly  was  about  to  call  to  him,  but 
Bob  said,  "Don't." 

"Why  not?"  she  demanded,  surprised. 


Polly  and  Bob  Conspire  113 


"Just  because." 

"Oh,  all  right,"  she  agreed,  "but  what  do  you 
suppose  he's  doing  down  here?" 

"Don't  know,  I'm  sure,"  Bob  answered,  but 
with  such  complete  indifference,  that  Polly  at  once 
decided  in  her  own  mind  that  he  knew  all  about 
it,  but  like  the  wise  child  she  was,  she  refrained 
from  asking  any  further  questions. 


CHAPTER  VIII 


THE  FOURTH  OF  JULY 

Bang — bang — bang — sizz — bang ! 

Polly  sat  up  in  bed  a  little  frightened. 

' ' What  under  the  sun!"  she  said  aloud.  Then, 
drowsiness  giving  way  to  memory,  "The  wretches, 
they  might  have  waited  until  dawn. ' ' 

Another  explosion,  and  Betty  and  Lois  fell  pell- 
mell  into  the  room. 

"Are  you  awake,  Poll!  Lordy,  what  a  racket," 
Betty  exclaimed. 

"Awake?  Well,  rather;  how  could  I  sleep 
through  that  ?  They  must  have  regular  giant  fire 
crackers,"  Polly  replied,  rubbing  her  eyes. 

"Or  a  cannon,"  Betty  suggested.  "It's  fun, 
isn't  it?" 

"I  think  it's  horrid,"  Lois  declared,  yawning. 
"It  can't  be  a  minute  after  five  o'clock,  and  I'm 
so  sleepy."  She  dropped  in  a  limp  heap  on  the 
end  of  the  bed,  buried  her  head  in  the  comfortable 
and  struggled  back  to  sleep. 

There  was  a  lull  in  the  cannonading  and  Polly 
got  out  of  bed,  slipped  on  her  wrapper  and  peeked 
curiously  out  of  the  window. 

114 


The  Fourth  of  July 


115 


"I  can  see  them,"  she  whispered  to  Betty. 
"Look,  they  are  getting  ready  to  set  off  a  perfect 
whopper.' ' 

Betty  wrapped  herself  in  the  curtain  and 
looked  out  of  the  other  window. 

" Don't,  for  pity  sake,  let  them  see  you,"  she 
warned. 

From  where  they  stood  they  could  see  the  boys 
plainly.  Bob  was  covering  a  big  cracker  with 
stones  and  the  red  headed  boy  was  straightening 
out  the  long  fuse.  Curly  watched  operations  from 
a  safe  distance. 

Bob's  voice  came  up  to  them. 

"If  this  doesn't  wake  them,  nothing  will,"  he 
said. 

"Are  you  sure  we're  under  the  right  win- 
dows?" Dick  asked. 

Bob  glanced  up  and  Betty  and  Polly  ducked 
hurriedly. 

"Bet,"  Polly  whispered,  "don't  you  dare  look 
again.  I'll  tell  you  what  we'll  do.  We  won't  go 
downstairs  until  breakfast  time  and  then  we'll  act 
as  if  nothing  had  happened." 

"But,  Poll,  they'll  never  believe  we  didn't  hear 
— bang! — that."  She  finished  as  the  last  cracker 
went  off. 

i '  Of  course  not,  but  they  won 't  be  able  to  tease 
us,  and  if  they  say  anything  we'll  pretend  we 
didn't  hear  a  thing." 


116         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


' '  Tell  Lois.  Jemima!  If  she  isn't  really 
asleep." 

Betty  looked  admiringly  at  Lois'  slumbering 
form. 

' ' Well,"  Polly  responded,  "if  she  is  really,  we 
can  pretend  we  were  too." 

' 4 What  time  is  it?" 

Polly  consulted  her  watch. 

"Six  thirty;  breakfast  at  eight.  Uncle  Koddy 
has  a  plan  on  foot  that's  to  be  a  surprise  for  to- 
day and  there's  to  be  a  party  at  Dr.  Hopper's 
to-morrow  afternoon,"  she  answered.  "Stay 
here  and  we'll  talk  till  seven  thirty."  They  got 
into  bed  without  disturbing  Lois. 

"I  wonder  what  plan  Uncle  Eoddy  has!"  Betty 
inquired. 

"I  can't  imagine.  Perhaps  he's  chartered 
Uncle  Cy's  boat  for  fishing,"  Polly  replied.  "We 
saw  him  come  up  from  the  dry  docks  last  night 
after  our  walk."  There  was  a  pause.  "That 
was  a  good  idea  of  Lois',  to  take  a  walk,"  Polly 
said  finally. 

"Do  you  think  so!"  Betty's  tone  left  no  doubt 
that  she  did  not. 

"Why,  yes,  don't  you?  I  feel  as  if  I  had  known 
Curly  and  Dick  all  my  life  now." 

A  disgusted  "humph"  was  all  Betty  had  to  say 
on  the  subject. 

It  was  half -past  eight  before  everybody  was  in 


The  Fourth  of  July 


117 


the  dining-room,  for  when  did  a  house  party  ever 
get  to  breakfast  on  time,  in  spite  of  good  reso- 
lutions? The  girls  were  a  little  heavy  eyed  but 
very  cheerful,  and  Lois  kept  insisting  quite  truth- 
fully that  she  had  slept  like  a  top.  Polly  and 
Betty  were  so  natural  and  unconcerned  that  the 
boys  were  nonplussed  and  exchanged  sheepish 
glances. 

When  they  were  all  seated  at  the  table  Uncle 
Eoddy,  who  sat  at  the  head,  made  a  speech. 

"Everybody,"  he  began,  4 ' to-day  you  have  to 
do  exactly  what  I  tell  you.  I've  planned  a  pic- 
nic. Be  on  the  front  piazza  at  nine  thirty  sharp, 
and  be  sure  to  have  some  sweaters  and  warm 
wraps  with  you." 

" Where  are  we  going!"  Polly  asked  eagerly. 

"That's  my  secret,  Tiddledewinks,"  Uncle 
Eoddy  answered,  laughing. 

Mrs.  Farwell  stopped  Polly's  teasing  any 
further  by  saying: 

"Eat,  children,  eat;  everything  is  getting 
cold." 

"And  you  know  what  picnics  are,"  Dr.  Far- 
well  added;  "a  long  walk,  hard  boiled  eggs  and 
another  long  walk.  I  don't  see,  Eoddy,"  he  con- 
tinued in  an  aggrieved  voice,  "why  you  insist  on 
dragging  us  away  from  this  comfortable  house. 
I'm  getting  too  old  for  picnics." 

"How  about  fishing!"  laughed  Uncle  Eoddy. 


118         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

' ' Oh,  fishing;  well,  that's  another  story/ '  and 
the  doctor  subsided. 

Breakfast  over,  there  was  a  half  hour  before 
time  to  start.  Mrs.  Farwell  disappeared  into  the 
kitchen  to  consult  with  Sarah.  Uncle  Koddy  and 
the  doctor  were  busy  with  fishing  tackle  on  the 
porch.  Bob  watched  them  for  a  while  and  then 
sauntered  over  to  Polly,  who  was  piling  sweaters 
and  rugs  on  the  steps. 

' i Hello,  where  are  the  rest! "  he  inquired. 

"Lo  and  Curly  are  over  looking  at  the  haunted 
house,  and  Betty  and  Dick  are  scrapping  some- 
where,' '  Polly  answered,  without  looking  up. 

"What  are  they  scrapping  about V9 

"I  don't  know;  Betty  vows  he's  hopelessly  con- 
ceited." 

"And  Dick  swears  she's  the  freshest  girl  he 
ever  met." 

"I  don't  think  he  has  any  right  to  say  that." 
Polly's  loyalty  was  aroused. 

"As  much  right  as  she  has  to  say  he's  con- 
ceited," Bob  returned  indifferently. 

"But  he  is  conceited." 

"Well,  Betty's  fresh." 

"She  is  not." 

"Oh,  all  right." 

There  was  an  injured  silence  for  a  minute ;  then 
Bob  said: 

"Let's  go  see  the  dogs.    I  like  this  picnic  idea 


The  Fourth  of  July  119 


all  right,  but  I  hoped  we  would  get  a  walk  with 
them  in  sometime  to-day.' ' 

"Perhaps  we'll  be  back  in  time,"  Polly  said, 
starting  down  the  steps.  ' '  If  you  're  coming,  come 
on,"  she  added  over  her  shoulder. 

They  passed  Betty  and  Dick  sitting  on  the  top 
of  the  stone  wall  near  the  barn.  They  were  in- 
deed having  a  dreadful  time  of  it.  Lois  and 
Curly  had  been  with  them  until  they  had  decided 
to  walk  over  to  the  Kent  place.  After  they  had 
left,  Betty  determined  to  be  very  polite. 

"I'm  so  glad  it's  such  a  nice  day,"  she  began. 

"Funny  how  fond  some  people  are  of  the 
weather,"  the  Bed  Headed  boy  answered,  with  a 
gleam  of  mischief  in  his  eyes. 

Betty  refused  to  be  angry;  she  ignored  his  re- 
mark by  asking  another  question. 

"Do  you  know  what  Mr.  Pendleton  has  planned 
for  to-day  ? ' '    This  with  decided  good  nature. 

"Do  you  know  how  to  keep  a  secret?"  Dick 
asked  in  turn. 

"Of  course  I  do,"  Betty  said  decidedly. 

" Indeed,"  he  replied  triumphantly;  "well,  so 
do  I." 

Betty  was  thoroughly  enraged,  and  there  is  no 
knowing  what  might  have  happened  had  not  Polly 
rand  Bob  returned  from  the  barn  and  joined  them. 

"You  do  look  cozy  here,"  Polly  said,  putting  an 
srm  around  Betty;  "it's  a  shame  to  disturb  you, 


120         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

but  it's  most  time  to  start;  come  on  up  to  the 
house;  I  hear  Uncle  Eoddy  whistling.'' 

For  the  next  five  minutes,  there  was  the  bustle 
of  starting.  Lois  and  Polly  both  picked  up  lunch- 
eon baskets,  and  then  remembering  there  were 
boys  present,  dropped  them. 

"Boys  are  useful  some  times,' '  Lois  laughed. 
"We  always  did  our  own  lugging  at  school,"  she 
explained  to  Curly. 

Uncle  Eoddy  led  the  way  down  the  hill  to  the 
water  and  around  toward  Uncle  Cy's  dock. 

"I  knew  it,"  Polly  said  gleefully;  "we're  going 
out  in  Uncle  Cy's  boat." 

"No,  we're  not,"  Bob  laughed;  "we're  going 
straight  past  his  cottage." 

Such  was  the  case.  Uncle  Koddy,  with  Mrs. 
Farwell,  never  so  much  as  looked  at  Uncle  Cy's, 
but  kept  on  to  the  ship  builders ',  turned  the  corner 
of  the  boat  house  and  suddenly  came  in  full  view 
of  a  beautiful  sail  boat  riding  at  anchor  up  the 
ereek. 

It  was  about  forty  feet  long,  with  a  cabin  and 
an  awning  covered  deck,  filled  with  comfortable 
chairs. 

There  was  a  shout  of  delight  as  the  others  saw 
it  and  Polly  exclaimed : 

"Uncle  Eoddy,  you  darling!  Lo,  it's  the  boat 
I  told  you  about.  It  used  to  be  in  dry  dock — 
how  did  you  ever  get  it  out  so  soon?" 


The  Fourth  of  July 


121 


"Sent  for  it,  dear,"  answered  Uncle  Koddy. 

Bob  was  already  on  board  and  had  finished  a 
tour  of  inspection. 

"Gee,  but  it's  a  corker,' '  he  cried,  jumping  back 
to  the  wharf  again. 

"What's  the  name  of  it?"  inquired  Curly. 

All  eyes  were  directed  towards  the  bow  of  the 
boat,  and  there,  in  brave  gilt  letters  was,  The 
Tiddledewinks.  It  was  a  minute  before  Dick 
or  Curly  understood  that  this  was  Uncle  Roddy's 
nick-name  for  Polly.  It  was  not  long  before  they 
were  all  aboard  and  Uncle  Roddy,  with  Polly  at 
the  wheel,  had  her  started. 

"Where  to?"  Polly  called  over  her  shoulder. 
The  brisk  wind  blew  her  hair  straight  back  from 
her  head  and  made  sails  of  her  sailor  tie.  She 
was  excited  and  proud,  but  above  all,  grateful  to 
Uncle  Roddy  for  this  new  surprise.  Bob  looked 
at  her  admiringly  and  whistled. 

"Dr.  Farwell  wants  some  fishing,  so  let's  head 
for  Flat  Rock,"  Uncle  Roddy  answered. 

Before  Mrs.  Farwell,  with  the  aid  of  Betty  and 
Lois,  had  stowed  away  the  luncheon  baskets  in  the 
cabin,  Uncle  Roddy  was  casting  anchor  about 
twenty  feet  from  a  big  flat  rock  that  was  covered 
with  sea  gulls. 

"All  lines  overboard,"  directed  the  doctor,  now 
in  his  element.  "And  a  prize  to  the  one  who 
catches  the  first  fish." 


122         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

There  were  not  enough  lines  to  go  round,  so 
Polly  and  Bob  shared  one.  They  went  way  up  in 
the  bow. 

Lois  and  Curly  followed  suit,  but  Betty  de- 
clared she  would  share  her  line  with  no  one  on 
earth  and  promptly  took  her  place  half  way  be- 
tween bow  and  stern  on  the  narrowest  strip  of 
deck. 

They  waited  for  half  an  hour,  hardly  saying  a 
word  for  fear  of  scaring  the  apparently  timid 
fish.  The  day  was  cloudless  and  the  water 
sparkled  and  rippled  monotonously  in  the  sun- 
shine. The  trim  white  boat  was  the  picture  of 
contentment  and  placidity  and  the  company  were 
not  at  all  prepared  for  the  sudden  shriek  that 
came  from  Betty.  It  completely  upset  the  peace 
of  the  scene. 

"Lordy!  I've  got  one,"  she  called  excitedly; 
"oh,  help,  it's  a  whale."  She  jumped  up  and  be- 
gan tugging  at  the  line,  while  something  pulled 
violently  on  the  other  end. 

"Look  out!  Betty,"  Uncle  Koddy  warned,  but 
just  then  "the  something"  gave  an  extra  jerk  and 
over  went  Betty,  all  arms  and  legs,  splash  into 
the  water.  It  seemed  to  her  that  she  stayed  un- 
der for  an  age,  though  she  could  think  quite 
clearly.  Finally  she  bubbled  up  and  tried  to 
strike  out  but  the  heavy  wet  sailor  suit  weighed 
a  ton,  and  she  seemed  to  have  forgotten  how  to 


The  Fourth  of  July  123 


swim.  There  was  a  second  of  wonder  as  she 
heard  another  splash  and  then  the  relief  of  feel- 
ing an  arm  on  her  shoulder. 

* '  Don't  struggle/'  a  voice  commanded. 
"  You  're  all  right." 

She  was  dragged  through  the  water  and  a  dozen 
hands  helped  to  pull  her  back  on  the  boat. 
Things  were  black  for  a  minute,  and  then  to  every 
one's  amusement  she  demanded: 

"Did  I  lose  him?" 

"You  certainly  are  a  sport,  Betty,"  laughed 
the  doctor,  rubbing  her  hands.  "Better  roll  up  in 
something  warm  while  your  clothes  dry. ' ' 

"Come  into  the  cabin,  dear,"  Mrs.  Farwell 
added.    "Are  you  sure  you're  not  cold?" 

"Oh,  Bet,  how  you  scared  me,"  Lois  laughed 
nervously. 

Polly  the  practical  had  found  a  big  steamer 
rug. 

"Here  you  are,  it  won't  take  long  for  your 
things  to  dry  in  this  breeze.  You  look  sort  of  blue 
around  your  mouth. ' ' 

Betty  didn't  answer;  she  was  just  thinking  that 
the  head  that  bobbed  up  beside  her  had  been  red. 
Finally  she  murmured : 

"Oh,  Lordy,"  and  closed  her  eyes. 

Fortunately  for  Dick,  the  boys  had  brought 
their  bathing  suits  in  hopes  of  a  swim,  and  from 
his  wet  clothes  he  changed  to  a  bathing  suit  and 


124         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

went  over  the  side  again.  Curly  and  Bob  were  not 
long  in  following  snit. 

"That  settles  the  fishing,"  growled  Doctor  Far- 
well,  and  he  and  Uncle  Eoddy  dejectedly  pulled  in 
the  lines. 

Luncheon  was  spread  on  the  deck  table  when 
Betty's  clothes  were  dry.  Every  one  was  seated 
before  she  came  up  out  of  the  cabin. 

"Come  on,  Bet,  we're  waiting  for  you,"  Polly 
called  to  her;  "here's  your  place." 

"How  are  you,  none  the  worse  for  your  ducking, 
eh?"  asked  the  doctor. 

"Oh,  I'm  all  right,  thanks,"  Betty  began,  "and 
as  hungry  as  a  bear.  I  wish  I  hadn't  given  you 
all  such  a  fright."  Then,  turning  to  Dick,  "I'm 
sorry  you  had  to  get  all  wet  on  my  account,"  she 
said. 

"Oh,  don't  mention  it,  I  rather  enjoyed  it,  but 
I  tell  you,  Betty,  this  falling  in  habit  of  yours 
ought  to  stop.  I  can't  always  be  around  to  pull 
you  out." 

Betty  ground  her  teeth  with  rage,  while  the 
others  laughed  heartily,  and  Lois  explained  to  her 
father  about  the  ducking  at  school. 

"I'll  fall  in  the  water  when  and  where  I  like," 
Betty  said,  after  the  laughter  had  subsided. 

"Oh,  very  well,  but  you  better  be  sure  I'm  look- 
ing. I  almost  didn't  see  you  this  time ;  the  splash 
you  made  was  all  that  saved  you." 


The  Fourth  of  July 


125 


Betty  had  discovered  that  the  best  way  to  stop 
Dick's  teasing  was  not  to  pay  any  attention  to  it. 

"What  do  yon  suppose  was  on  the  other  end  of 
my  line,  Uncle  Roddy?"  she  asked,  for  all  the 
world  as  if  Dick  were  a  thousand  miles  away. 

"Oh,  a  shark  at  least,"  Uncle  Eoddy  laughed. 

"Oh,  it  doesn't  take  a  shark  to  pull  Betty  over," 
Dick  said  mischievously.  "She  just  looks  at  the 
water  and  in  she  goes." 

"I  do  not,"  Betty  denied  hotly. 

"Of  course  you  don't,  Bet,"  Bob  said  good 
naturedly,  "and  if  Dick's  cross  at  getting  the 
beautiful  creases  in  his  trousers  spoiled,  it's  his 
own  fault ;  here  were  Curly  and  I  dying  to  jump 
in  and  save  you  and  he  never  even  gave  us  a 
chance. ' ' 

"In  fact,"  said  Curly  very  gently,  "he  told  me 
he 'd  drown  any  one  else  that  tried  saving  that  kid 
when  he  was  around." 

Dick  suffered  the  keenest  embarrassment  dur- 
ing the  laughter  that  followed,  and  kept  far  away 
from  Betty  for  the  rest  of  the  afternoon. 

After  luncheon,  Doctor  Farwell  insisted  on 
some  real  fishing,  and  Mrs.  Farwell  on  some  plain 
sailing.  They  did  both.  The  string  of  fish  they 
caught  was  enough  for  supper  for  all  the  hungry 
party,  but  nothing  happened  that  could  compare 
with  Betty's  first  bite. 

They  were  a  tired  but  merry  party  when  they 


126         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

returned.  Before  they  went  to  bed,  Betty  sur- 
prised Dick  in  one  of  the  bay  windows  of  the  liv- 
ing room ;  it  was  the  same  one  in  which  Lois  had 
taken  refuge  the  day  of  Miss  Hemingway's  call. 

"Say,"  she  began  inelegantly.  "I  didn't  half 
thank  you  for  pulling  me  out  to-day.  I  guess  I'm 
not  awfully  keen  on  being  teased." 

"Oh,  that's  all  right,"  Dick  answered,  "and  I 
guess  I'm  a  little  too  keen  about  teasing." 

"Well,"  said  Betty. 

"Er— let's  call  it  off,  the  feud,  I  mean,"  Dick 
said. 

"Agreed,"  Betty  laughed,  but  she  added  as  she 
disappeared  around  the  corner  of  the  door: 
"That  is,  if  you  think  we  can." 


CHAPTER  IX 


MORE  HOUSE  PARTY 

After  the  picnic  Polly  and  Bob  had  had  their 
walk  with  the  dogs,  and  discussed  the  plans  for 
the  next  day. 

"There's  always  the  pony  cart,"  Bob  had  said 
in  reply  to  Polly's  question.  "What's  to  be 
doner' 

"But  that's  too  small  for  six  people,"  Polly  had 
objected. 

"Wait  a  second."  Bob  had  been  struck  with  a 
sudden  idea.    "Can  Lois  drive  Banker?" 

"As  well  as  I  can,"  Polly  had  assured  him. 

"Then  let's  let  them  go  in  the  pony  cart  and 
we'll  go  lobstering  with  that  Uncle  Cy,  you've  been 
talking  so  much  about." 

Polly  groaned  at  the  thought  of  getting  up  an- 
other morning  at  daybreak,  but  she  said : 

"All  right." 

Six  o'clock  found  them  on  the  wharf  waiting  for 
Uncle  Cy. 

"Gee,  I'm  sleepy,"  yawned  Bob;  "you  were  a 
sport  to  come,  Poll. 

"H'm,  I'll  always  go  lobstering  at  any  time 

127 


128         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


of  day,"  answered  Polly.  "I  wish  we'd  taken 
more  breakfast  though,  it's  going  to  be  awfully 
rough." 

"What's  the  idea  of  going  so  early?" 
6 '  Tide  of  course ;  here 's  Uncle  Cy.    Good  morn- 
ing." 

"Waal,  now,  Miss  Polly,"  Uncle  Cy's  ruddy 
face  was  expanded  in  a  huge  smile.  "This  is  like 
old  times.  I  thought  city  ways  would  make  you 
forget  gettin'  up  in  time  for  the  lobsters." 

"Not  much,"  Polly  scoffed  at  the  idea.  "This 
is  Bob  Farwell,  Lois'  brother,"  she  explained,  in- 
troducing Bob. 

"Eight  glad  to  meet  ye."  Uncle  Cy  shook 
hands  genially.  "And  now,  if  you're  ready,  I 
guess  it's  about  time  to  start." 

Polly  took  her  place  by  the  wheel  as  usual. 

"Is  there  much  of  a  channel?"  inquired  Bob. 

"Well,  it's  rather  narrow  and  tricky,"  Polly 
told  him.  "I  don't  know  why  more  boats  don't 
go  on  the  rocks." 

"How  does  it  happen  that  you  know  it  so  well? " 

"Oh,  I  was  brought  up  to  it,  I  never  remember 
the  time  I  didn't  know  how  to  steer  Uncle  Cy's 
boat.  Every  time  I  got  cross  and  grouchy" — 
"and  that  was  tolerable  often,"  Uncle  Cy  put  in — 
"I  used  to  sneak  off  down  here  and  go  lobstering. 
Oh,  look  out."  They  had  left  the  Cove  and  were 
out  in  the  bay.    A  big  wave  broke  over  the  bow. 


More  House  Party  12S 


"I  told  you  it  would  be  rough.' ' 

"Are  you  a  pretty  good  sailor,  young  fellow ?" 
Uncle  Cy  shot  an  inquiring  glance  at  Bob  from 
under  his  shaggy  brows.  City  boys  he  had  little 
enough  use  for  on  land  and  none  at  all  on  sea. 

"Oh,  fair,"  Bob  replied  modestly,  "but  I'm  not 
bragging  any.    When  do  we  get  to  the  pots?" 

"Over  thar's  the  first  one ;  do  you  reckon  ye  can 
help  f ' '  Uncle  Cy  picked  up  the  big  hook  and  of- 
fered it  to  Bob. 

He  looked  at  it  doubtfully. 

"Oh,  that's  not  fair,"  Polly  said,  "you  hook  the 
first  one  and  show  him  how ;  he  '11  never  be  able  to 
do  it  himself." 

Her  tone  was  the  least  bit  patronizing,  and  it 
seemed  to  Bob  that  she  and  Uncle  Cy  expected  a 
good  laugh  at  his  expense.  This  was  not  the  case 
at  all.  Polly  knew  Uncle  Cy  wanted  a  chance  to 
show  up  a  city  boy's  ignorance,  and  she  didn't 
want  him  to  have  that  chance. 

Bob  made  a  sudden  resolve.  " Let's  have  the 
hook,"  he  said;  "what  do  I  do,  catch  that  rope  on 
that  buoy?" 

"Wall,  yes,"  Uncle  Cy  drawled  "if  ye  can." 
He  put  the  engine  into  second  speed  and  Polly, 
agog  with  excitement,  steered  the  boat  just  as  near 
the  buoy  as  possible  and  watched. 

This  meant  Uncle  Cy's  good  or  bad  opinion  of 
Bob,  and  she  was  very  anxious  for  it  to  be  good. 


130         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

Bob  thrust  the  hook  in  the  water,  drew  it  gently 
under  the  buoy  and  caught  the  rope  as  easily  as  if 
he  had  been  lobster  fishing  all  his  life.  Uncle  Cy 
helped  him  haul  up  the  pot  and  together  they  took 
out  the  lobsters,  rebaited  and  dropped  it  back  be- 
fore a  word  was  spoken.  Then  Uncle  Cy  cleared 
his  throat: 

"Not  so  bad  for  a  first  try,"  he  said,  non-com- 
mittally.   ' '  Let  her  go,  Polly. ' ' 

They  pulled  sixty  pots,  Bob  hooking  them  all 
without  missing  one,  and  reached  home  just  a  few 
minutes  before  one. 

"That  was  corking,  thanks,"  said  Bob,  stretch- 
ing his  cramped  muscles ;  and  Polly  echoed : 

"You  bet  it  was,  I  never  had  such  fun  lobstering 
before,  and  we  got  a  pretty  good  haul ;  twenty  is 
not  so  bad." 

' i  Waal,  I 'm  glad  you  liked  it.  I 'm  much  obliged 
for  your  help,"  Uncle  Cy  answered,  looking  out 
over  the  water.  "Don't  want  to  be  hurrying  you, 
but  you'd  better  get  along  home  afore  the  storm. 
There's  one  coming." 

"Oh,  Bobby,"  Polly  exclaimed  joyfully  when 
they  were  out  of  earshot.  "I  could  have  shouted 
with  glee  when  you  caught  that  buoy.  You're  a 
wonder.  Uncle  Cy  was  sure  you  couldn't ;  he  even 
winked  at  me  when  you  said  you 'd  try. ' ' 

"H'm,"  grunted  Bob,  remembering  his  feelings 


More  House  Party  131 


had  been  hurt.    "And  I'll  bet  yon  winked  back." 

1 6  I  did  not, ' '  Polly  denied  emphatically.  i  6  How 
mean  of  you  to  say  so." 

' 1 Did  you  think  I  could  do  it?" 

"Of  course  I  did,  even  though  it's  awfully  hard 
until  you  get  the  knack." 

This  was  a  plain  fib ;  Polly  hadn 't  thought  any 
such  thing.    Bob  was  slightly  mollified. 

"You  certainly  did  steer  that  boat  around  to 
the  queen's  taste,"  he  said,  at  last;  "I'd  never 
have  caught  them  but  for  that." 

This  was  better,  and  Polly  thought  it  wise  to 
keep  away  from  the  subject. 

"Here  comes  the  rain,"  she  said.  "We'll  have 
to  make  a  sprint  for  home.  I'll  race  you  to  the 
carriage  block. ' ' 

They  were  off.  Polly  kept  up  with  Bob  the  first 
few  feet,  but  was  soon  left  panting  behind. 

"You  can  run,"  she  said,  as  he  waited  for  her, 
"I  won't  race  you  again. 

Bob  was  still  for  a  minute,  then  he  blurted  out : 
"Poll,  if  you  promise  not  to  tell,  I'll  tell  you  a 
secret. ' ' 

1 i  Go  ahead, ' '  Polly  answered. 

"I'm  going  to  try  for  the  track  at  college  next 
year;  I  won  my  quarter  at  school,  you  know." 

"Yes,  Lo  told  me.  Oh,  Bob,  that  would  be 
great." 


132         Polly's  Summer  ^Vacation 


"Of  course  I  may  not  have  a  chance,  running 
in  a  small  school  and  in  college  are  two  different 
things.    Still  I  made  pretty  good  time." 

They  had  reached  the  porch  by  now  and  Bob 
lowered  his  voice.  The  others  were  all  there,  ap- 
parently waiting  for  them. 

"Hello,  you  two,"  sang  out  Lois,  "we  thought 
you  were  shipwrecked. ' ' 

"You  just  escaped  the  rain,"  Curly  said.  And 
Betty  and  Dick  exchanged  glances  and  burst  out 
laughing. 

"Well,  here  you  are  at  last" — Mrs  Farwell 
stood  in  the  doorway;  "did  you  have  a  good 
time?" 

"Splendid,"  chorused  Bob  and  Polly. 

"You  must  be  hungry,  and  luncheon  is  ready." 

When  they  were  seated  at  the  table  and  the  first 
pangs  of  hunger  satisfied,  Polly  asked: 

"Where  have  you  all  been  this  morning'?" 

"Out  for  a  ride  in  the  pony  cart,"  Betty  told 
her. 

"Have  a  good  time?" 

"Yes,  awfully.  We  went  to  the  village  first, 
then  we  drove  for  miles  straight  into  the  country. " 

"Through  a  covered  bridge  that  said:  ' Cross 
this  at  your  own  risk.'  " 

They  were  all  talking  at  once. 

"On  our  way  back,  Miss  Hemingway  caught 
us,"  sighed  Lois. 


More  House  Party 


133 


"  And  filled  us  full  of  the  most  wonderful  ginger- 
bread.' '  This,  with  an  expressive  smack  of  the 
Hps,  from  Curly. 

"I  do  hope  the  rain  won't  spoil  the  garden 
party,"  Mrs.  Farwell  said,  "it  would  be  a  shame, 
they  wanted  to  have  some  tennis,  Mrs.  Hopper  told 
me." 

"It's  only  a  thunder  shower,  and  won't  last 
long,"  Uncle  Eoddy  assured  them. 

"What  time  does  the  thing  begin?"  asked  the 
doctor.    "  Do  I  have  to  go  ? " 

"You  do."  Mrs.  Farwell  was  decided  on  that 
point.    "It  begins  at  four  o'clock." 

They  spent  the  time  between  luncheon  and  time 
to  dress,  in  the  hay  loft,  telling  stories,  and  as  Lois 
described  it,  "having  a  very  undignified,  but  thor- 
oughly good  rough  house." 

Mrs.  Hopper  received  them  on  the  lawn  of  the 
rectory.  There  were  dozens  of  people  there  and 
the  Pendleton  party  made  quite  a  stir.  The  girls, 
who  were  spending  the  summer  on  the  green,  and 
who,  Miss  Hemingway  had  described  as  "silly 
things,"  were  there,  and  were  soon  introduced. 
They  were  two  girls  about  eighteen  and  nineteen, 
both  pretty  in  a  doll  baby  way.  Their  names  were 
Euth  J enkins  and  Anita  Saunders. 

It  was  not  long  before  a  set  of  doubles  in  tennis 
was  arranged.  Euth  chose  Dick  for  a  partner, 
and  Violet  Hopper  played  with  a  Frank  Sumner, 


134 


Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


who  had  always  lived  in  the  village.  He  was  talk- 
ing to  Polly  when  the  game  was  called. 

"See  you  later,' '  he  said,  as  he  picked  up  his 
racket.    ' i  Wish  me  luck. ' ' 

Dick  and  Euth  had  the  worst  of  it  from  the  start. 
Violet  was  a  really  good  player — and  as  Betty 
afterwards  said:  "She  didn't  bother  to  pose  all 
over  the  court.  And  she  had  played  a  great  deal 
with  Frank." 

When  the  set  ended,  Bob  and  Anita  were  chosen 
to  play  the  victors.  Those  watching,  who  had 
been  surprised  that  as  poor  a  player  as  Euth 
would  attempt  to  play,  were  flabbergasted  when 
Anita  began. 

"Oh,  but  Bob's  happy,"  Lois  laughed;  "he 
plays  a  wonderful  game,  and  how  he  hates 
doubles." 

They  watched  in  silence,  while  Violet  and  Frank 
won  three  straight  games.  They  would  have  won 
the  rest  as  easily,  had  not  Anita  decided  she  was 
getting  too  tired  to  play  any  more. 

Bob  heaved  a  sigh  of  relief  as  she  sank  grace- 
fully on  the  bench  beside  her  cousin. 

"Who  will  fill  Miss  Anita's  place?"  asked  the 
rector,  a  dear  old  gentleman  whom  every  one  loved. 

"Polly,  you  play.    Come  on,"  Violet  called  out. 

"Yes,  Poll,  of  course,"  Frank  agreed. 

"Oh,  let  one  of  the  older  girls,"  Polly  answered, 
not  moving. 


More  House  Party  135 


Bob  came  over  to  her  side  and  took  her  arm. 
"Up  you  get,  no  flunking,' '  he  warned. 

The  game  began  again,  this  time  in  real  earnest. 
Polly  was  a  good  player,  and  as  Lois  had  said, 
Bob  was  a  wonder.  They  beat  Violet  and  Frank 
the  set,  and  played  another,  just  for  the  fun  of  it. 
Then  Betty  and  Dick  challenged  Lois  and  Curly, 
and  beat  them  unmercifully.  Polly  went  over  and 
talked  to  the  other  girls  until  time  to  go  home. 

On  the  way  up  the  hill  they  laughed  over  the 
game. 

"She  flunked.  I  hate  a  girl  that  flunks/ '  Dick 
said.  "Why  did  she  start  if  she  couldn't  go 
through  with  itV 

4  i  She  looked  pretty,  though,  with  a  racket  poised 
in  one  hand,"  said  Betty,  wickedly. 

"I  thought  old  Bob  would  tell  her  to  at  least 
keep  out  of  his  way, ' '  chuckled  Curly. 

'  1  Oh, ' '  groaned  Lois,  ' '  there 's  more  truth  in  that 
than  you  think.  I've  seen  Bob  awfully  rude  to 
girls  like  that. ' ' 

"What  were  you  talking  to  them  about,  Poll?" 
demanded  Betty,  "French  heel  slippers?" 

"H'm,  well  not  exactly,"  said  Polly  seriously. 
"Say,  girls,  did  either  of  you  ever  hear  of  The 
Whitehead  School,  a  select  seminary  for  young 
ladies!" 

Betty  and  Lois  laughed,  "Well,  rather,"  they 
answered. 


136         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


" What's  the  joke?"  Dick  demanded. 

"Nothing,  only  that's  the  school  we  licked  so  in 
basket  ball,"  Betty  explained  grandly.  "Go  on, 
Poll,  what's  next?" 

"Anita  and  Kuth  are  both  seniors  there  next 
year." 

"What!" 

"Oh,"  Polly  continued,  dropping  her  mysteri- 
ous tone ;  "  I  had  such  a  lark.  I  got  them  raving 
about  Whitehead,  and  then  I  said  quite  casually, 
'  Whitehead,  why  it  seems  to  me  we  beat  you  in 
basket  ball  last  year.'  Of  course  they  wanted  to 
know  what  school  we  went  to,  and  insisted  they'd 
never  heard  of  Whitehead  being  beaten." 

"Oh,  Polly,  what  did  you  say?"  demanded  Lois. 

"I  said  Seddon  Hall  did.  I  could  have  added 
something  about  tennis  too,  but  I  didn't." 

"You  bet  Seddon  Hall  did,"  Betty  gloated, 
"and  it  will  next  year,  too." 

"Of  course  Seddon  Hall  can  beat  anything," 
laughed  Bob.  "Three  cheers  for  Seddon  Hall!" 
And  the  boys  gave  them — hearty  ones,  much  to 
the  surprise  of  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Farwell  and  Uncle 
Koddy,  in  the  carriage  ahead. 


CHAPTER  X 


THE  INVITATION 

Let's  go  for  the  mail."  Polly  made  the  sug- 
gestion from  the  depths  of  the  Gloucester  ham- 
mock, in  a  tone  that  implied  anything  would  be 
preferable  to  her  present  condition. 

A  week  had  passed  since  the  house  party.  The 
boys  had  left  one  day,  to  be  followed  two  days 
later  by  Betty.  She  had  been  summoned  home  to 
attend  the  wedding  of  a  distant  cousin,  much  to 
her  disgust.  Polly  and  Lois,  thrown  once  more 
on  their  own  resources  were  rather  lonesome. 

Lois  took  time  to  consider  the  suggestion,  then 
she  agreed. 

"All  right,  let's  do;  you  know  I  feel  as  though 
the  bottom  had  sort  of  fallen  out  of  things,"  she 
said. 

"I  know,  it's  the  fish  out  of  water  feeling," 
Polly  nodded.  "TVe  did  have  a  good  time  though, 
didn 't  we  ? " 

"I  should  say  so;  I  wish  it  could  have  kept  up 
all  summer,  but  I  suppose  that's  expecting  too 
much. ' ' 

Polly  got  up  lazily,  "Well,  don't  let's  grouch 
about  it,"  she  admonished;  ' ' come  on." 

137 


138         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

They  harnessed  Banker  themselves — Tim  was 
out  somewhere  in  the  fields — and  started  for  the 
post  office.  As  they  passed  the  haunted  house 
they  saw  Maud  standing  listlessly  on  the  walk. 

' ' Hold  on,"  Lois  said,  " let's  ask  the  mysterious 
child  to  go  with  us. ' ' 

"Good  idea,"  Polly  agreed,  "she  does  look  kind 
of  forlorn." 

She  turned  Banker  around  and  started  up  the 
weed  choked  driveway. 

"Oh,  Maud,  want  to  drive  to  the  village  with 
us?"  Lois  called  out,  and  Polly  seconded  the  in- 
vitation. 

Maud  looked  up  at  the  sound  of  voices,  and 
without  a  word  ran  straight  for  the  house  like  a 
terrified  deer. 

"What  under  the  sun!"  asked  Lois  in  surprise. 

"Perhaps  she  didn't  hear  us,"  Polly  suggested. 
"Let's  go  into  the  house.  We're  here,  and  we 
may  as  well. ' ' 

Mrs.  Banks  answered  their  knock — there  were 
no  bells  in  the  mysterious  house — and  even  to  the 
girls,  it  was  apparent  that  she  was  deeply  worried 
about  something. 

"We  called  to  see  if  Maud  would  like  to  drive  to 
the  village  with  us.  We're  going  for  the  mail," 
Polly  said  in  her  prettiest  manner.  It  was  not  in 
vain  that  Aunt  Hannah  had  drilled  her  in  the  nice- 
ties of  a  well  bred  girl. 


The  Invitation 


139 


"We  thought  we  might  get  cooled  off  that  way, 
it's  so  awfully  hot,"  Lois  added. 

"That's  very  sweet  of  you,"  Mrs.  Banks  an- 
swered, smiling.  "Maud  has  just  come  in. 
Maud,  dear,"  she  called. 

As  they  listened  for  an  answer,  the  faint  sound 
of  crying  came  to  them  from  the  back  room. 

"Just  a  minute  and  I'll  go  and  find  her,"  Mrs. 
Banks  said  hastily,  as  if  to  divert  their  attention 
from  the  sound.  "Won't  you  sit  down,  I'll  be 
right  back. ' '  She  left  them  and  disappeared  into 
the  next  room. 

"Maud,  dear,  the  girls  want  you  to  drive  to  the 
village  with  them,"  they  heard  her  say  coaxingly, 
as  though  she  were  talking  to  a  very  small  child. 
Maud's  voice  was  low  and  frightened  as  she  an- 
swered : 

"I  don't  want  to  go,  I  don't  want  to  go." 

"Oh,  please,  dear,  it  would  be  so  good  for  you,  I 
know  you'd  love  riding  in  a  pony  cart."  Mrs. 
Banks'  voice  went  on,  "You  must  go,"  she  said 
firmly,  but  very  gently. 

Maud  seemed  to  take  this  as  almost  a  command. 
The  girls  heard  louder  sobs. 

"Oh,  please,  Mother,  don't  make  me  go,  I  don't 
want  to,  I  don't  want  to." 

"Jemima,"  whispered  Polly,  borrowing  Betty's 
exclamation.  "What  is  the  matter  with 
her?" 


140         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

"Hush,"  cautioned  Lois,  her  fingers  on  her  lips. 

Mrs.  Banks  came  into  the  room. 

"I'm  sorry,  girls,  Maud  is  not  feeling  well 
enough  to  go.  She  is  very  nervous,  you  know," 
she  said.  "I'm  sure  she's  grateful  to  you  for 
having  asked  her."  The  hurt  look  had  deepened 
in  her  eyes  as  she  spoke;  "And  I  know  I  am." 

6  <  Oh,  that  >s  all  right, ' '  Polly  replied.  6  <  Can  we 
get  anything  for  you  in  the  village?" 

"No,  thank  you,  dear,"  Mrs.  Banks'  voice  fal- 
tered.   "I'm  sorry  about  Maud." 

All  the  way  down  to  the  post  office  the  girls  dis- 
cussed this  queer  turn  of  events. 

"Poll,  there  must  be  something  awfully  wrong 
with  her;  what  do  you  suppose  it  is?" 

"I  don't  know.  She  sounded  as  though  she 
were  afraid  she  was  going  to  be  half  killed,  and 
yet  look  how  adorable  Mrs.  Banks  was  to  her." 

"What  did  she  say  about  her  being  ill?" 

"Not  ill,  nervous,  but  that  wouldn't  make  her 
so  terrified  of  a  ride  to  the  village." 

"It  might.  Dad  had  a  patient  like  that  once; 
she  was  afraid  of  her  own  shadow." 

"Did  she  get  over  it?" 

"Yes,  they  operated,,  or  something  queer." 

Dr.  Farwell  would  have  shuddered  had  he  heard 
his  daughter.  He  always  said  Lois  was  a  disgrace 
to  a  medical  father. 

"Was  she  all  right?" 


The  Invitation 


141 


"Yes,  after  that.  Seems  to  me,  something  was 
pressing  on  something  else  in  her  head.  Mother 
will  remember  about  it." 

"Well,  it's  certainly  queer.  Poor  kid,  it  must 
be  awful  to  be  like  that."  Polly's  healthy  young 
mind  recoiled  at  the  idea.  "Mrs.  Banks  seemed 
to  want  her  to  go  with  us ;  perhaps  we  can  make 
friends  gradually  with  her,  she  certainly  talked 
to  Aunt  Kate." 

"We  ought  to  try,  anyway.  It's  dreadful," 
Lois  said  decidedly,  as  they  drove  up  before  the 
post  office. 

The  mail  was  well  worth  going  for. 

"Six  letters,"  Polly  cried  triumphantly,  as  she 
got  back  into  the  cart.  "Two  for  Aunt  Kate,  a 
card  for  you — " 

"  It 's  from  Curly, ' 9  laughed  Lois. 

"And  I  have  one  from  Bob,  and  here's  a 
letter  for  you  and  one  for  me,  and  they're  from 
Louise." 

"Let's  open  them,  quick." 

They  both  read  them  through  hurriedly,  and 
Polly  said : 

"Lo,  is  yours  an  invitation!" 

"Yes,  to  come  up  to  camp  for  a  week." 

"So  is  mine,  I  knew  she  wouldn't  forget.  I 
hope  Aunt  Kate  will  let  us  go." 

1 i  Of  course  she  will. ' '  Lois '  tones  were  positive 
from  long  acquaintance  with  her  mother. 


142         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

"She  says,  come  the  eighteenth;  that's  next 
week. ' ' 

"I  wonder  who  else  will  be  there.' ' 
"Her  cousin  Frances,  she  speaks  of  her  in  my 
letter." 

"She  does  in —  oh,  shucks,  here  come  Euth  and 
Anita  and  Violet.' ' 

"Hello,"  they  both  greeted,  as  a  minute  later 
the  three  girls  stopped  beside  them.  "Isn't  it 
hot?" 

i '  I  should  say  so,  but  you  shouldn 't  kick,  it 's  al- 
ways cooler  on  the  hill  than  it  is  down  here,"  and 
Violet  pointed  to  the  green. 

"Too  hot  even  for  tennis,"  Lois  remarked  inno- 
cently. She  had  not  beaten  any  one  and  felt  she 
had  a  right  to  bring  up  the  subject. 

"Oh,  quite,"  said  Euth  airily;  "and  that  re- 
minds me,  I  had  a  letter  from  one  of  the  girls  on 
our  team  and  she  said  to  ask  you  if  you  were  the 
three  girls  who  jumped  in  and  saved  that  Field 
Day  game?" 

Lois  and  Polly  exchanged  surprised  glances. 

"We  were  on  the  sub-team,  and  they  did  use  us 
that  day  and  Seddon  Hall  did  win  the  game,  but 
we  didn't  do  it  all,"  Lois  answered. 

Euth  looked  her  admiration ;  she  was  a  little  sur- 
prised and  confused.  Here  were  two  girls,  who, 
according  to  her  friend,  had  saved  the  day  by 
wonderful  playing  and  they  disclaimed  all  credit. 


The  Invitation 


143 


She  knew  that  if  she  had  made  even  a  sub-team  she 
would  have  had  to  brag  about  it. 

i 'Come  on  over  and  have  something  cool  to 
drink,"  she  said  impulsively. 

The  unexpected  invitation  caused  Anita  to  lift 
her  eyebrows  in  surprise,  but  she  echoed  it  faintly, 
though  artistically.  She  disliked  girls  in  short 
skirts  who  could  play  tennis  with  boys  in  white 
flannels  better  than  she  could. 

When  they  were  on  the  porch,  conversation 
flagged.  There  is  a  big  gulf  between  fourteen  and 
eighteen,  and  there  was  no  topic  of  mutual  inter- 
est. Besides,  the  girls  were  anxious  to  get  home 
and  plan  for  the  coming  visit. 

They  all  drank  their  lemonade  in  silence  and 
then  Violet  said : 

"  All  that  raft  of  boys  at  your  house  gone  back? " 

"Yes,"  Polly  answered,  "they  went  right  after 
the  Fourth."  * 

"Bob's  coming  back  in  a  week,  though,"  Lois 
said;  "and  he'll  stay  most  of  the  summer." 

"Which  one  was  Bob?"  Anita  asked. 

"The  one  you  started  to  play  tennis  with." 

'  *  Oh,  yes,  funny  thing  I  could  not  get  along  with 
him.    One  can't  with  some  people,  you  know." 

She  looked  at  Polly  and  seemed  to  expect  an 
answer. 

She  got  an  abrupt  one. 

"No,  I  don't  know,"  Polly  told  her  decidedly. 


144         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

Anita  was  a  little  surprised,  but  tried  again. 
"I  mean  he  didn't  seem  to  know  what  balls  I 
wanted  him  to  return." 

"  No  ? ' '  The  inflection  of  Polly 's  voice  was  dan- 
gerously sweet.  "That  was  stupid  of  him,  be- 
cause you  seemed  to  expect  him  to  return  them 
all.  Anybody  that  can't  beat  in  tennis  with  Bob 
Farwell  for  a  partner  needn't  expect  to  with  any 
one  else.  He's  the  finest  player  I  ever  saw." 
The  rush  of  words  ended. 

There  was  a  horrible  silence.  Polly,  her  cheeks 
flushed,  her  eyes  snapping,  subsided  into  her  chair. 

"It  is  hot  down  here,"  Lois  said  desperately, 
after  an  endless  minute.  "I  suppose  the  hill  cuts 
off  the  breeze.  Hadn't  we  better  start  for  home, 
Poll?  We've  got  to  go  round  by  Uncle  Cy's  and 
get  the  lobsters  for  luncheon." 

There  were  no  lobsters  to  be  gotten;  but  any- 
thing to  get  away. 

Polly  was  the  least  embarrassed  of  them  all. 

"Perhaps  we'd  better,"  she  said  evenly. 

The  good-bys  were  said  quite  as  if  nothing  had 
happened,  and  Lois  asked  the  girls  to  come  up  and 
have  tea  with  them  some  afternoon.  As  they 
drove  off  they  distinctly  heard  Anita  say : 

"Of  all  the  spitfires!" 

Lois  laughed. 

"Polly  Pendleton,  I  never  saw  you  so  furious," 
she  said. 


The  Invitation 


145 


"I  know  it,  but  I  couldn't  help  it.  I  can't  stand 
that  girl,-  she  makes  me  wild." 

i i Well,  you  needn't  have  taken  her  head  off. 
It  was  awfully  rude,  in  her  own  house,  too." 

' ' Humph,  I  couldn't  help  that,  why  did  she 
say  it  in  her  own  house!"  Polly  flared  back,  in 
defense. 

"Say  what?" 

"Why,  about  Bob,  she  knows  she  couldn't  hit  a 
ball  to  save  her  life.  She  was  just  crawling  and 
trying  to  blame  him. ' ' 

Lois '  jaw  dropped  in  sudden  wonder.  So  it  was 
Bob.   Aloud  she  said: 

"Cool  down,  Poll.  How  do  you  manage  to  get 
as  mad  as  that?  I  never  could,  it  takes  so  much 
trouble  to  hate  people." 

"I  hate  people  the  way  I  like  them,  good  and 
hard,"  Polly  answered  emphatically.  "I  suppose 
that's  it.  Let's  forget  it.  She  made  me  forget 
Louise's  invitation,  drat  her." 

The  thought  of  it  made  her  hurry  Banker  along, 
and  they  reached  home  in  a  short  time. 

"Of  course  you  may  go,"  Mrs.  Farwell  said 
when  she  had  read  Louise's  invitation.  "Only 
you  must  be  careful.  Those  Adirondack  lakes  are 
very  dangerous,  and  there  are  so  many  people 
hunting. ' ' 

"Cheer  up,  Mumsie  darling,  no  one  is  going  to 
take  Poll  or  me  for  a  deer." 


146         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

"I'd  like  to  know  why  not?"  Polly  inquired  in 
a  mock  huff;  "I  can  be  a  dear  at  times." 

"And  a  spitfire  at  others,"  Lois  added. 

"Why,  Lois!"  Mrs.  Farwell  was  amazed. 

Lois  hastened  to  explain.  She  described  the 
encounter  between  Polly  and  Anita  in  highly  ex- 
travagant terms. 

"There,  wasn't  that  delicious?"  she  demanded. 
Mrs.  Farwell  shook  her  head  and  tried  to  look 
shocked,  but  gave  it  up. 

"Polly,  Polly,  Polly,"  she  said,  laughing,  "you 
should  have  had  red  hair  like  Dick's.  And  all  for 
Bobbie!" 

"It  was  not,"  Polly  denied  stoutly.  "I'd  have 
been  just  as  mad  if  it  had  been  Lo  or  Betty." 

"Of  course  you  would,  dear.  I  was  only  teas- 
ing." 

Polly,  glad  to  change  the  subject,  recounted  the 
strange  behavior  of  little  Maud. 

"She  was  just  plum  scared  to  death,"  she  fin- 
ished. "What  do  you  suppose  was  the  matter 
with  her?" 

"How  strange,  poor  little  thing;  I  can't 
imagine,"  Mrs.  Farwell  looked  perplexed.  "Per- 
haps Mrs.  Banks  will  tell  me  some  day,"  she 
added,  remembering  the  appeal  for  sympathy  in 
the  other  woman's  eyes. 

"It's  weird,  I  don't  like  it,"  Lois  wrinkled  up 


The  Invitation 


147 


her  nose ;  " there's  some  mystery  there.  I  always 
did  hate  to  pass  that  house,  now  I  shall  die  of 
fear." 

" Mystery!"  queried  Polly. 

"Yes,  of  course,  Maud  must  have  seen  the  ghost 
of  the  old  miser,  or  those  English  soldiers.  That 's 
why  she's  so  scared." 

"Lois,  don't  be  absurd,"  Mrs.  Farwell  said 
sharply.  "That  isn't  kind.  Hadn't  you  better 
answer  your  letters?" 

"We  had,"  Polly  agreed,  getting  up.  "I'll 
write  Betty,  too.   I  owe  her  a  long  letter." 

"And  I'll  write  Bob,"  Lois  said,  but  she  whis- 
pered it  in  her  mother's  ear,  and  they  both  laughed. 


CHAPTEE  XI 


THE  VISIT 

"Be  sure  and  telegraph  me  when  you  meet  Bob, 
and  as  soon  as  you  get  to  camp.''  Mrs.  Farwell 
called  these  parting  instructions  just  as  the  train 
pulled  out  of  the  station,  with  Polly  and  Lois  as 
passengers. 

"We  will,"  they  called  back,  and  waved  until 
the  train  was  out  of  sight. 

"Well,  we're  off  at  last,  Poll;  I  know  I've  for- 
gotten something,"  Lois  said. 

"So  do  I,  but  then  you  always  feel  that  way 
when  you  start  any  place."  Polly  was  busy,  ar- 
ranging the  suitcases  and  bags. 

It  was  a  hot  day  and  the  dust  and  cinders  flew 
in  the  window  and  covered  their  silk  pongee  travel- 
ing dresses. 

"We'll  be  sights  when  we  get  to  town.  I  know 
my  face  is  black  already."   Lois  complained. 

"Oh,  leave  it  alone,  you'll  only  rub  it  in,"  Polly 
warned,  as  she  made  a  dab  at  her  nose  with  her 
handkerchief.  "We  can  take  some  of  it  off  just 
before  wet  get  into  the  station." 

"We'd  better,  or  Bob  will  refuse  to  know  us." 

148 


The  Visit 


149 


They  settled  back  as  comfortably  as  possible  in 
the  lumpy  seats  and  looked  disconsolately  out  of 
the  window.  It  wTas  two  long,  dusty  hours  before 
they  reached  the  Grand  Central  Station.  Bob  was 
there  to  meet  them.  He  was  a  little  thinner  and 
some  of  his  brown  was  gone.  He  had  Uncle 
Eoddy 's  car  and  hurried  the  girls  into  it,  and  away 
to  a  hotel. 

"Oh,  lordy,"  Lois  exclaimed,  as  she  caught  sight 
of  herself  in  the  little  mirror  between  the  win- 
dows. "We  are  sights.  ."We'll  have  to  wash  up 
before  luncheon.' ' 

"Have  you  finished  all  your  exams,  Bob?" 
Polly  asked.  She  knew  he  had,  and  knew  that 
probably  he  had  heard  the  results  too.  She  was 
afraid  to  ask.  It  would  be  terrible  if  he  had  to  say 
"I  flunked." 

"Yes.  Latin  was  the  last  one  and  I  took  it  last 
week."    His  voice  sounded  dejected. 

"Well?" 

"Oh,  Bob,"  Lois  caught  some  of  the  suspense 
in  Polly's  "well."  "You  haven't  flunked  have 
you,  dear?" 
* '  I  don 't  know  yet.  I  '11  hear  any  day  now. ' ' 
"Thank  goodness.  You  scared  me  to  death. 
I  thought  sure  you  knew  the  worst.  What 
are  you  looking  so  glum  about  then?"  she  de- 
manded. 

"He  doesn't  look  glum,  he  looks  tired.  So 


150         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


would  you,  if  you  were  taking  entrance  exams/ ' 
Polly  defended  him. 

' ' Tired  is  no  reason  for  being  grouchy,' '  Lois 
replied  airily. 

' '  Huh !  Do  you  remember  exam  week  at  school, 
and  the  rage  you  were  in?" 

Bob  began  to  laugh. 

"Go  to  it,  I'm  betting  on  Poll,  and  when  you  get 
through,  I'll  tell  you  why  I'm  grouchy." 
"Tell  us  now." 

"Are  you  sure  you're  through?  I  wouldn't 
stop  the  fight  for  a  farm." 

"Yes,  we  are,  tell  us."  Lois  accompanied  her 
command  with  a  playful  push. 

Bob  had  enjoyed  the  argument,  but  now  that  the 
cause  of  it  recurred  to  him  his  face  assumed  its 
crestfallen  expression. 

"You  remember  Burr  Gerard,  don't  you,  Lo?" 
he  asked. 

"Yes,  of  course." 

"He  was  my  roommate  at  school,"  Bob  ex- 
plained to  Polly.  "He  lives  out  in  St.  Paul.  We 
were  both  going  up  to  college  together ;  we 'd  even 
engaged  our  rooms." 

"Well?" 

"I  had  a  letter  from  him  this  morning  saying 
he 'd  changed  his  plans. ' ' 

"Oh,  Bobbie,  what  a  shame!  What  made  him 
do  that?"  Lois  inquired. 


The  Visit 


151 


"Oh,  he's  got  a  crazy  notion  into  his  head  that 
farming  is  the  one  and  only  thing  for  him.  His 
people  own  lots  of  land  out  there,  so  he's  going  to 
go  to  an  agricultural  college. ' ' 

"Who  will  you  room  with,  then?"  Polly  asked. 

"I  don't  know.  Burr  and  I  have  always  been 
together  and  I  can't  get  used  to  the  idea  of  any- 
body else." 

"Oh,  cheer  up,  you'll  find  some  one  nicer  than 
Burr  at  college,"  Lois  said.  "I  never  liked 
him  much.  Thank  goodness!  I'm  hungry,"  she 
added  as  the  car  drew  up  in  front  of  the  hotel. 

They  hurried  to  the  dressing  room,  removed 
some  of  the  dirt  and  then  repaired  to  the  dining- 
room,  where  they  ate  a  hearty  luncheon.  It  was 
not  until  the  salad  was  on  the  table  that  Polly  ex- 
claimed : 

"Lois,  we  forgot  to  telegraph  your  mother!" 

Bob  was  dispatched  right  then  and  there,  much 
to  his  disgust,  so  that  no  more  time  should  be  lost. 
That  afternoon  they  went  to  the  theater  with  Bob 
and  had  dinner  at  the  Grand  Central  Station. 
The  train  for  the  Adirondacks  left  a  little  before 
eight.  They  had  the  stateroom  at  the  end  of  the 
car,  and  as  it  was  the  first  time  either  of  them 
had  spent  the  night  on  a  train  without  some  older 
person,  they  were  very  much  excited. 

"Are  you  sure  you  have  everything  you  want?" 
Bob  asked,  just  before  he  left  them.    "I  promised 


152         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


Uncle  Boddy  not  to  forget  a  thing ;  he  had  a  million 
fits  that  you  were  going  alone,  and  that  he  couldn't 
be  here  to  start  you  off  safe  and  sound  at  least.' 9 

" Let's  see,"  Polly  assumed  a  business-like  air. 
"Tickets?  yes.  Money?  yes.  Extra  money,  in 
case  of  accident?  yes.  Card  of  identification?  yes. 
Yes,  Bob,  I  guess  we  have  everything.  And,  of 
course,  Louise  is  sure  to  meet  us." 

"Thanks  for  the  candy,  big  brother,  dear,"  Lois 
said  teasingly.  "I  am  sure  we  will  get  there  all 
right.  Hadn't  you  better  put  us  in  the  conduc- 
tor's care?" 

"I  have  already,"  Bob  replied,  "I  told  him  you 
were  my  little  sisters,  and  to  take  good  care  of 
you." 

"Bobbie,  you  didn't!" 

"Of  course  I  did." 

"We're  starting!"  The  car  gave  a  sudden 
lurch,  and  Polly  was  frightened. 

"No,  we're  not,  that's  only  the  engine  backing 
up,"  Bob  assured  her,  "but  I  guess  I'd  better  be 
going." 

Polly  followed  him  to  the  vestibule  of  the  car. 
Lois  had  already  started  unpacking  her  bag. 
"Good-by,  and  thanks  a  lot  for  meeting  us,"  she 
said. 

' 6  Well,  I  only  hope  you  get  there  all  right.  Lo 
is  sure  to  do  something  crazy.  The  last  time  I 
went  anywhere  with  her  she  lost  her  hat."  Bob 


The  Visit 


153 


chuckled  at  the  memory.  Then  he  added  seri- 
ously : 

' i Don't  forget  to  wire  mother,  and  say,  Poll, 
while  you're  about  it,  you  might  wire  me  too, 
then  111  let  Uncle  Eoddy  know.   Will  you?" 

"Yes,  Bob,  of  course  I  will,  and  you'll  let  me 
know  if  you  hear  about  your  exams,  won't  you?" 

"You  bet,  I'll  send  a  wire  with  Murray,'  if  I 
pass  and  ' gloom'  if  I  flunk." 

The  train  started  moving.  Bob  said  a  hasty 
good-by  and  swung  to  the  platform.  Lois  joined 
Polly  and  they  waved  until  they  were  out  of 
sight. 

They  went  back  to  their  stateroom  much  too 
wide  awake  to  think  of  bed.  About  ten  o'clock 
Lois  decided  she  must  have  something  to  eat.  "I 
tell  you,  I'm  starved,"  she  insisted. 

"Well,  let's  order  something,"  Polly  more  for 
the  novelty  of  it  than  from  any  real  hunger, 
pressed  the  bell,  and  when  the  smiling  porter  ar- 
rived, ordered  two  chicken  sandwiches  and  two 
bottles  of  ginger  ale.  He  put  a  table  for  them  be- 
tween the  seats,  and  they  ate  and  chattered  until 
after  eleven. 

It  was  all  they  could  do  to  hurry  out  of  their 
berths  next  morning.  They  had  breakfast  and 
were  hardly  ready  to  get  off  as  the  train  stopped 
at  the  tiny  station.  It  was  a  soft,  misty  morning, 
with  that  strange  quiet,  peculiar  to  the  Adiron- 


154         Polly's  Slimmer  Vacation 

dacks,  which  makes  even  the  breaking  of  a  twig 
a  noise.  It  seemed  less  than  a  minute  before  they 
found  themselves  stranded  on  the  platform  with 
the  train  already  out  of  sight.  They  looked 
around  them  in  sleepy  eyed  surprise,  which  gave 
way  to  utter  bewilderment  as  they  realized  that 
Louise  was  not  there  to  meet  them.  Polly  tried 
the  station  door,  it  was  locked. 

They  were  alone,  quite  decidedly  alone.  The 
only  familiar  object  in  sight  was  the  little  patent 
leather  trunk  standing  on  one  end  down  the  plat- 
form. 

They  faced  each  other. 

"Well?"  Lois  asked  anxiously,  a  little  tremor 
in  her  voice. 

"Well,"  Polly  answered,  with  suppressed  ex- 
citement, but  no  trace  of  fear. 

"Are  you  sure  you  wrote  Louise  the  right 
train?"  Lois  inquired. 

"Positive;  she's  delayed,  that's  all;  she'll  prob- 
ably show  up  in  a  few  minutes."  Polly  was  re- 
assuring. She  sniffed  the  balsam  air  joyously. 
"It  would  be  a  lark  if  we'd  gotten  out  at  the  wrong 
station,  wouldn't  it?"  she  added;  "we'd  have  to 
walk." 

Lois  eyed  her  suspiciously. 

"Where?"  she  demanded,  in  so  flat  a  tone,  that 
it  should  have  squelched  such  an  absurd  sugges- 
tion. 


The  Visit 


155 


"Oh,  I  don't  know.  We'd  find  camp  if  we  fol- 
lowed the  right  trail.' ' 

' 6 Polly,  you're  silly,"  Lois'  scorn  was  wilting. 

But  Polly's  venturesome  spirit  refused  to  be 
snubbed. 

"I  know  it,"  she  agreed  happily,  "but  I  can't 
help  it,  this  place  thrills  me.  I  expect  to  meet  an 
Indian  chief  any  minute,  or  a  bear. ' ' 

Lois '  reply  was  cut  short  by  the  welcome  sound 
of  carriage  wheels.  A  buck-board  was  coming 
down  the  road  at  full  tilt. 

"Louise,"  Lois  exclaimed  hopefully. 

"It  is  not,  it's  two  boys,"  Polly  corrected. 
' '  Wonder  who  they  are  ? ' '  She  looked  inquiringly 
at  the  two  lanky  occupants  of  the  front  seat, 
as  they  drove  up  to  the  platform  with  a  flour- 
ish. 

She  had  time  to  see  that  the  one  who  was  driving 
was  tall,  broad  shouldered  and  very  brown,  before 
her  eyes  were  caught  and  held  by  the  amazing 
sight  of  his  companion.  He  was  a  boy  of  perhaps 
sixteen  or  seventeen,  with  a  shock  of  tawny  col- 
ored hair,  blue  almond  shaped  eyes  and  a  mouth 
that  was  nothing  more  than  a  long  fixed  grin  that 
turned  up  at  the  ends ;  he  looked  for  all  the  world 
like  an  overgrown  brownie.  So  much  so,  that 
Polly  looked  at  his  ears,  half  expecting  to  see  them 
pointed. 

The  driver  jumped  to  the  ground,  and  after  a 


156         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


hurried  glance  at  the  initials  on  Lois '  trunk  walked 
up  to  the  girls. 

' ' You're  Lois  Farwell  and  Polly  Pendleton, 
aren't  you?"  he  inquired,  smiling.  ' '  Though  I 
don't  know  which  is  which.  I'm  Francis  Preston, 
Louise's  cousin."  The  girls  gave  a  guilty  start. 
"Lou  isn't  quite  strong  enough  yet  to  get  up  at 
five  o'clock,"  he  went  on,  "so  she  sent  us  over 
for  you." 

"You're  Francis."  Lois  looked  incredulous. 
"Why,  I  thought  Frances  was  a  girl." 

"A  girl!  I  say,  I'm  sorry  to  disappoint  you." 
Mr.  Grant  looked  decidedly  uncomfortable. 

"But  I'm  not  disappointed,  I'm  tickled  to 
death."  Then,  realizing  that  was  not  exactly  the 
thing  to  say,  she  held  out  her  hand.  "How  do 
you  do." 

Polly  followed  suit. 

"I'm  awfully  glad  you  came,"  she  said.  "We 
were  beginning  to  wonder  what  we  should  do. 
Lo  was  sure  we'd  written  Louise  the  wrong  train." 

They  walked  toward  the  carriage. 

"I'm  awfully  sorry  we  kept  you  waiting,"  Fran- 
cis apologized.  "You'll  have  to  blame  that  on 
Vert;  he's  the  lazy  one.    I  couldn't  get  him  up." 

"Oh,  Frank,  that's  not  fair,  giving  a  fellow  a 
bad  name  before  he's  introduced."  The  answer 
came  in  slow  complaining  tones,  as  the  grin  broad- 
ened. 


The  Visit 


157 


Frank  laughed. 

" That's  right,  my  mistake,  Miss  Farwell,  Miss 
Pendleton,  this  is  Mr.  Verton  Eeade." 

Vert  unwound  his  legs,  which  seemed  to  have 
been  twisted  around  each  other  a  remarkable  num- 
ber of  times,  stepped  over  the  wheel  and  shook 
hands  with  Polly  and  Lois. 

"Come  and  help  me  with  the  trunk,' '  Francis 
commanded. 

Vert  shrugged  his  shoulders  and  reluctantly 
obeyed. 

The  girls  watched  his  retreating  figure. 
Though  whether  it  was  his  blue  check  shirt,  his 
orange  tie  or  his  vivid  green  socks  that  held  their 
attention  it  is  hard  to  say;  they  were  all  equally 
startling. 

"Lois,"  Polly  gasped,  when  he  was  out  of  hear- 
ing, "I'll  die  laughing.  Look  at  that  shirt,  it 
looks  like  a  thunder  and  lightning  storm." 

Lois  giggled. 

"Hush,"  she  warned,  a  minute  later.  "Don't 
stare  so,  they  are  coming  back." 

"I'll  have  to  send  a  telegram,"  Polly  said,  as 
they  approached.    "How  can  I  do  it?" 

"Write  it  out,  slip  it  under  the  station  door  and 
trust  to  luck,  old  Lemuel  sends  it,"  Francis  told 
her,  producing  paper  and  pencil  from  his  pocket. 

Polly  wrote  out  her  messages.  One  to  Mrs. 
Farwell  and  one  to  Bob,  and  slipped  them  under 


158         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


the  door  as  directed,  then  they  climbed  hurriedly 
into  the  carriage,  while  the  boys  strapped  the 
trunk  on  behind.  Frank  whipped  up  the  horses — 
two  splendid  bays — and  away  they  dashed. 

"Jemima!  are  they  running  away?"  Lois  de- 
manded, hanging  on  to  Polly  for  dear  life. 
"Don't  make  them  go  so  fast,"  she  pleaded. 

"Never  fear,  they  can't  much  longer;  this  is  the 
only  part  of  the  road  that  is  a  road,"  Francis  an- 
swered her,  "and  I  like  to  make  the  best  of  it." 

As  he  spoke,  he  slowed  the  horses  down  to  a 
walk,  as  the  road  straggled  off  into  the  woods. 

Both  boys  turned  in  their  seats  and  the  con- 
versation began. 

"How  is  Louise?  You  know  she  had  been  sick 
and  operated  on  before  we  knew  a  thing  about  it," 
Lois  said. 

"Oh,  she's  all  right,  but  she's  still  a  little 
shaky,"  Francis  told  her. 

"And  gee,  she's  pale,"  Vert  made  a  long  and 
horrible  face,  in  his  attempt  to  picture  her  wan 
look. 

Polly  laughed. 

' i  Goodness !  I  hope  she  doesn 't  look  like  that, ' ' 
she  cried. 

"Well,  I  never !"  Vert  could  hardly  be  said  to 
speak.  He  mumbled  and  all  his  words  rolled  into 
one  another,  he  made  another  face,  this  time  the 
corners  of  his  mouth  turned  up,  and  his  eyes, 


The  Visit 


which  were  the  biggest  part  of  him,  grew  round 
as  saucers. 

Polly  and  Lois  doubled  up  with  laughter. 

i  1  He,  he,  looks  like  Billikins, ' '  Polly  managed  to 
say  between  giggles. 

"  Billikins !' '  Francis  roared  with  laughter. 
"Billikins,' '  he  repeated;  "of  course  he  does,  I 
never  thought  of  it  before.  Billikins  he'll  be. 
Wait  till  I  tell  the  boys  at  school.  You've  hit  it 
this  time,  Miss  Pendleton.' ' 

"Say,  you're  mean,"  Vert  looked  over  his  shoul- 
der with  such  a  crestfallen  expression,  that  for  the 
moment,  Polly  felt  a  tinge  of  remorse. 

"I'm  not,  really,"  she  said;  "if  I  honestly 
thought  it  I  wouldn't  say  it.  You  don't  think  I'd 
tease  a  lame  man  about  being  lame,  do  you  ? ' '  she 
asked  with  her  sweetest  smile. 

"Say,"  Vert's  tone  was  decided,  he  began  to 
unwind  his  legs,  "I'm  coming  back  there.  You 
don't  mind  sitting  with  Frank,  do  you,  Miss  Far- 
well?" 

"That's  a  good  idea,"  Francis  agreed;  "let's 
move  around." 

He  stopped  the  horses  and  the  exchange  of  seats 
was  made.  The  arrangement  proved  to  be  thor- 
oughly satisfactory.  Lois  and  Frank  made  the 
delightful  discovery  that  they  enjoyed  talking  to 
each  other,  but  what  is  more  rare  and  important, 
they  enjoyed  listening  to  each  other.    They  laid 


160         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

the  foundation  of  a  lasting  friendship  as  they 
jogged  through  the  mysterious,  wise  old  woods. 

Polly  and  Vert,  on  the  back  seat,  laughed  and 
made  faces  and  teased  each  other  until  the  camp 
was  in  sight. 

It  was  in  the  heart  of  the  woods,  on  a  small  lake, 
the  beginning  of  a  chain,  Francis  explained.  The 
Prestons  lived  in  canvas  tents  in  the  roughest  man- 
ner, with  a  guide  as  the  only  servant. 

Louise  and  her  mother  were  waiting  for  them  in 
front  of  the  mess  tent,  and  at  the  sight  of  their 
beloved  friend,  Polly  and  Lois  forgot  their  escorts 
and  embraced  her,  with  all  the  vigor  of  Seddon 
Hall  hugs.  They  found  her  changed  in  some  un- 
explainable  way.  She  was  so  weak  and  quiet.  It 
was  hard  to  pick  up  the  threads  of  friendship 
where  they  had  dropped  them,  but  school  and  the 
exchange  of  news  soon  wore  away  the  restraint, 
and  Louise  cheered  up  visibly  under  the  incessant 
chatter. 

In  the  evening  they  went  for  a  paddle  on  the 
lake  with  the  boys,  but  they  were  ready  for  bed 
long  before  their  usual  time.  Neither  of  them 
had  ever  slept  under  canvas  before,  nor  on  pine 
boughs. 

i ' This  is  a  lark,  isn't  it?"  Lois  inquired,  when 
they  had  retired  to  their  tent  for  the  night.  She 
was  sitting  on  the  edge  of  her  bunk. 

' i  You  bet  it  is,  but  oh,  dear,  how  sleepy  this  air 


The  Visit 


161 


makes  me."  Polly  yawned.  "  Isn't  Vert  a 
scream!"  she  whispered. 

"I  love  him  when  he  grins,"  Lois  answered. 

'  6  Grins,  you  mean  when  he  grins  some  more, 
his  month  is  nothing  but  a  grin,"  Polly  laughed. 
6 ' Francis  is  nice  too,  don't  you  think!" 

"Oh,  yes,  he's  great.  Wasn't  it  a  joke  our 
thinking  he  was  a  girl?"  Lois  asked.  "Hi,  hum, 
I  see  larks  ahead,"  she  finished,  blowing  out  the 
candle. 

Polly  yawned  again,  snuggled  down  under  her 
steamer  rug  and  murmured  sleepily:  "Let  'em 
come." 


CHAPTER  XII 


THE  FIRST  DAY  AT  CAMP 

"Oh,  Polly,  wake  up,  won't  you,  please?"  Vert's 
drawling  voice  wafted  through  the  flap  of  the 
girls '  tent,  disturbing  the  last  blissful  moments  of 
sleep. 

It  was  only  an  hour  or  so  after  sunrise,  but  the 
boys  were  wide  awake  and  apparently  anxious  to 
begin  the  day.  Francis  joined  his  plea  to  Vert's, 
and  though  Polly  and  Lois  struggled  to  keep 
asleep,  it  was  useless. 

"We'll  get  up  right  away,  if  you'll  keep  still," 
Polly  called.  Adding  as  an  afterthought,  "Billi- 
kins. ' ' 

Vert  groaned,  and  she  knew  he  was  making  a 
face. 

"There  you  go;  I  wish  I'd  let  you  sleep." 

"Get  into  your  bathing  suits  and  come  down  to 
the  lake  for  a  dip,"  Francis  added;  "it's  great  this 
morning." 

Lois  and  Polly  shivered.  They  were  frozen  as 
it  was,  and  the  thought  of  icy  water  was  not  tempt- 
ing. However,  they  hurried  into  their  suits  and 
joined  the  boys. 

162 


The  First  Day  at  Camp 


163 


It  was  a  cool  frosty  morning.  The  dew  on  the 
leaves,  the  bright  sun  on  the  lake,  made  the  world 
glitter  and  sparkle.  Polly  took  a  deep  breath, 
threw  out  her  chest  and  welcomed  the  day  with  a 
full  contented  sigh. 

Lois  shivered,  but  her  eyes  feasted  on  the  scene 
before  her.  Unlike  Polly,  her  sigh  was  one  of 
wonder.  Everything  was  so  beautiful  that  it  hurt, 
and  she  caught  her  breath  in  a  very  ecstasy  oi 
delight. 

The  boys  already  at  the  lake,  called  impatiently, 
and  they  hurried  to  them.  Mrs.  Preston  called 
a  cheery  good  morning  from  her  tent.  Louise, 
it  seemed,  was  still  asleep  in  spite  of  all  the 
noise. 

"I'm  so  cold,"  Lois  shivered;  "let's  run  and 
get  warmed  up  before  we  go  in,,,  she  suggested. 
Francis  agreed  and  they  started  off  towards  the 
woods  at  a  dog  trot. 

Polly  and  Vert  decided  to  make  the  plunge  at 
once. 

"If  I  don't  go  in  now,  I  never  will,"  Polly  said. 
"I  couldn't  get  up  my  courage.  I'll  race  you 
across  the  lake." 

"All  right,  come  on. ' '  Vert  implied  by  his  tone 
that  if  she  wanted  to  be  beaten,  he  had  nothing  to 
say.  They  plunged  together  into  the  icy  water, 
and  swam  vigorously  to  the  other  shore.  Polly 
won!    She  suspected  Vert  of  shamming. 


.164         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


"Did  you  let  me  beat  you?"  she  demanded,  as 
they  rested  on  the  other  bank. 

"No!"  Vert  ejaculated,  overcome  by  surprise. 
"Catch  me  letting  a  girl  beat  me  if  I  can  help  it. 
Where  did  you  learn  to  swim?" 

"Oh,  in  the  water,"  Polly  told  him  airily.  "I 
don't  remember  when  I  didn't  know  how.  Watch 
Lois." 

They  looked  across  the  lake.  Francis  was  in 
the  water,  but  Lois  was  still  on  land. 

"You'll  never  get  in  that  way,"  they  heard  him 
say.    "Just  jump  all  at  once,  it's  great." 

"But  it's  over  my  head,"  Lois  squealed. 

"Well,  can't  you  swim!"  Vert  called  over  to 
her. 

"Yes,  but  I  like  to  know  where  bottom  is.  I 
know  I'm  a  baby,  but  I  can't  help  it. 

4 '  Keep  still,  Vert. ' '  Francis '  tone  was  peremp- 
tory. "I  won't  let  you  sink,  I  promise,"  he  told 
Lois. 

"All  right,  here  goes,  but  I  know  I'll  freeze  to 
death  if  I  don't  drown."  There  was  a  loud 
splash. 

"There,  you're  all  right,"  from  Francis. 

"I'm  not,  I'm  not.    Where  are  you?  Oh!" 

"Here,  put  your  arm  on  my  shoulder.  Now 
you're  safe." 

"Yes,  but  I'm  cold."  Poor  Lois'  voice  was  al- 
most a  sob. 


The  First  Day  at  Camp 


165 


Polly  laughed  in  spite  of  herself. 
6 6 I'll  race  you  back/'  she  said  to  Vert. 
"Ah!  what's  your  hurry?"  he  begged. 
"You're  lazy." 

"No,  I'm  not  ;  I'm  just  passive,  rather  than  ac- 
tive." 

"That's  the  same  thing.  Come  on,  we'll  take  it 
easy." 

They  rolled  into  the  water  and  swam  with  long, 
easy  strokes  back  to  shore. 

"Breakfast  in  fifteen  minutes,"  Louise  called 
out  from  the  mess  tent,  as  they  passed  on  their 
way  to  dress;  "so  hustle." 

Polly  blew  her  a  good  morning  kiss. 

"Breakfast!  What  a  welcome  thought.  Oh, 
Lou,  I'm  starved."  And  Polly  dived  into  her 
tent. 

"H'm,  that  coffee  smells  good.  Where  are  the 
boys!"  she  asked  twenty  minutes  later,  as  they 
sat  down  on  the  rude  benches  around  the  table. 

"Oh,  they've  had  their  breakfast  and  have 
started  out  hunting,"  Louise  laughed.  "They'll 
be  back  in  a  couple  of  hours  for  a  second  one, 
though.  I  think  Vert  was  ashamed  to  face  you, 
Poll,  after  the  way  you  beat  him  swimming." 

"He  let  me;  he  was  just  too  lazy  to  try,"  Polly 
answered.  "I'm  ready  for  some  more  pan- 
cakes." 

"So  am  I,"  echoed  Lois.    "Anything  that's 


166         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

hot.  I'm  sure  you'll  never  get  me  in  that  lake 
again,  not  until  it's  steam  heated  anyway." 

Breakfast  over,  they  washed  up  the  dishes — 
the  guide  was  off  with  the  boys — and  set  the  table 
for  luncheon. 

"Now,  let's  go  out  and  talk,"  Louise  said  when 
they  had  finished.  "I  declare  if  I  had  known 
that  the  boys  were  going  to  want  so  much  of  your 
company,  I'd  have  sent  them  away  before  you 
came. ' ' 

"H'm,"  Lois  sniffed,  "looks  as  if  they  wanted 
us  this  morning,  doesn't  it?" 

"Oh,  they'll  be  back  pretty  soon,"  Louise  as- 
sured her. 

"And  now  tell  me  all  about  this  summer  and 
what  you've  been  doing." 

Lois  began,  Polly  interrupted  and  corrected, 
and  Louise  and  Mrs.  Preston  asked  questions  for 
the  rest  of  the  morning.  It  was  great  fun.  They 
hadn't  realized  what  a  good  time  they  had  had 
until  they  began  talking  about  it.  The  boys  came 
and  ate,  tried  to  break  up  the  gab  fest,  as  they 
termed  it,  and  departed  in  disgust  to  fish. 

"Are  you  going  to  talk  all  the  afternoon,  too?" 
Vert  demanded  at  luncheon.  "It  beats  me  what 
girls  find  to  say  to  each  other  all  the  time." 

"Things  you  wouldn't  understand,"  Lois  told 
him.  "For  instance,  this  morning  we  discussed 
the  approximate  position  of  the  equator  in  regard 


The  First  Da}-  at  Camp  167 


to  the  sun,  and  the  therapeutic  value  of  manipula- 
tion on  the  soft  tissues. " 

Vert  screwed  his  face  up,  and  looked  more  like 
Billikins  than  ever. 

4 1  Now  she's  starting  too;  it's  catching,"  he 
groaned. 

' ' What  is!"  Louise  asked,  laughing. 
"I  don't  know.    What  she  does."    He  pointed 
to  Polly. 

" That's  known  in  polite  society  as  slamming," 
Francis  explained  with  a  grin. 

"Well,  I  don't  see  that  my  question  is  answered 
yet,"  Vert  reminded  them.  "Are  you  going  to 
talk  all  the  afternoon,  or  are  you  going  to  give 
us  the  pleasure  of  your  company  and  your 
slams?" 

"They  are."  Louise  settled  the  question  for 
them.  "They  have  been  angels  to  poke  around 
here  with  me  all  morning,  and  I  know  they  must 
want  some  excitement.  This  is  a  poor  place  to 
come  for  it." 

"As  the  boys  say,  there  is  never  anything  do- 
ing," Mrs.  Preston  said.  She  was  a  tall,  slim, 
quiet  woman,  with  little  to  say,  but  with  a  smile 
for  every  one. 

"You  forget  the  games  on  Saturday,"  Louise 
reminded  her.  "That's  what  I'm  saving  up  my 
strength  for;  it's  the  one  thrill  of  the  year  up 
here,  that,  and  the  fireworks  on  the  Fourth. ' ' 


168         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

6 '  What  happens  f "  Polly  asked. 

"Oh,  it's  a  lark.  We  all  get  up  about  five 
o'clock,  take  canoes  and  paddle  for  miles  and 
miles,  till  we  reach  the  Hill's  Camp.  Everybody 
else  has  been  doing  the  same  thing,  so  there 's  quite 
a  crowd.' ' 

"Where  do  we  paddle?  You  can't  go  far  on 
this  lake,"  Lois  asked,  in  wide  eyed  amazement. 

Frank  and  Vert  exchanged  amused  glances,  and 
Vert  said: 

"I'll  explain.  Now  give  me  your  entire  atten- 
tion." He  paused  for  a  minute,  until  an  impres- 
sive silence  had  fallen  on  his  listeners.  "First, 
we  get  into  the  canoes  and  paddle  up  to  the  end 
of  this  lake,"  he  began.  "Then,  and  here  comes 
the  secret,  we  open  a  little  door  that  is  there;  it's 
a  very  small  door,  so  little  that  we  lie  down  flat 
on  the  floor  of  the  canoe.  The  door  leads  to  a 
very  small  and  black  tunnel,  inhabited  by  snakes 
and  frogs.  We  go  through  that  until  we  reach 
the  next  lake,  and  so  with  them  all ;  it 's  very  sim- 
ple, except  when  you  get  stuck;  that  makes  it 
awkward. ' ' 

"  Oh ! "  Lois  didn 't  quite  dare  to  believe  or  dis- 
believe. "Is  that  really  so!"  she  said,  looking 
from  one  to  the  other. 

Suddenly,  they  all  began  to  laugh,  and  Vert  got 
up  to  give  a  little  jig. 

' i  She  bit,  oh,  rapturous  revenge,  she  bit.  There 


The  First  Day  at  Camp  169 


now  I've  paid  you  back.  It's  your  turn  next, 
Polly." 

"Lo,  how  could  you  believe  it?"  Polly  was 
still  laughing.  "I  should  think  that  living  with 
Bob  you'd  be  used  to  teasing  by  now." 

"I  know  it,"  Lois  sighed  profoundly,  her  good 
nature  not  one  bit  ruffled.  "I  always  believe 
everything.  It's  because  I'm  so  honest,  I  sup- 
pose, and  I  expect  it  from  others." 

' '  Oh,  there  you  go  again ;  that 's  not  fair.  I  said 
we  were  even."   Vert  looked  worried. 

4  4  Well,  do  go  on  and  tell  us  what  happens  when 
we  get  to  Hill's  Camp;  Louise,  never  mind  how 
we  get  there,"  Polly  said. 

"Oh,  there  are  all  sorts  of  games  and  contests. 
A  canoe  race,  a  swimming  race.  Poll,  you  ought 
to  enter  for  that.  A  shooting  match  and  an  arch- 
ery contest." 

"Suppose  you  finish  telling  about  it  outside," 
Mrs.  Preston  interrupted.  "I  want  to  get  the 
table  cleared  off  while  Murray  is  here  to  help." 

"Come  on,  Lois,  we're  going  for  that  walk," 
Francis  announced,  as  they  pushed  back  their 
chairs.  His  tone  implied  that  they  had  planned 
for  it  long  ago.  Lois  agreed  at  once,  and  before 
the  others  were  settled  in  the  steamer  chairs,  they 
were  out  of  sight. 

"If  you'll  come  down  to  the  lake,  Polly,  I'll 
teach  you  to  paddle.   You  could  stand  some  les- 


170         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

sons,  you  know,  after  the  way  you  splashed  around 
last  night."  Vert  drawled  the  words  out,  waiting 
ages  between  each  one. 

"I  like  that;  I've  been  told  that  I  paddle  just 
like  an  Indian,"  Polly  retorted,  not  knowing 
whether  he  was  in  earnest  or  not. 

Vert  bowed  low. 

"I  didn't  know  we  had  a  Minnie  Ha  Ha  in  our 
midst.    Come  on,  though,  just  the  same." 

"No,  thanks,  I'm  going  to  stay  and  talk  to  Lou; 
that's  why  I  came  up  here."  Polly  settled  her- 
self comfortably  on  the  ground  beside  Louise's 
chair. 

"No,  you're  not,  Poll;  go  along,  you  must," 
Louise  insisted.   But  Polly  refused. 

She  began  to  talk  about  school.  Vert  wandered 
away,  dejection  in  the  droop  of  his  shoulders.  He 
returned  a  couple  of  hours  later,  and  threw  him- 
self down  on  the  ground  beside  Polly.  He  looked 
so  down  hearted,  that  she  finally  had  pity  on  him 
and  they  started  for  the  lake. 

Once  in  the  canoe,  after  the  instructions  had 
been  drawn  out  to  their  utmost  limit,  a  sudden 
silence  settled  on  Vert.  Every  time  Polly  looked 
at  him  he  made  faces.  Sometimes  he  screwed  up 
his  mouth  and  imitated  a  fish,  sometimes  it  was 
a  rabbit.  Polly  watched  and  applauded  until  she 
got  tired. 

"Oh,  stop  making  faces.    Don't  you  ever  say 


The  First  Day  at  Camp  171 

anything  ? ' '  she  asked,  thinking  longingly  of  Bob 's 
clever  talk. 

Vert  yawned.   "Nope,"  he  replied  slowly. 
"I'm  lingually  lazy." 
"You're  what?" 
"Lingually  lazy." 

Polly  laughed  at  the  new  word.  "Well,  there's 
one  thing,  you're  not  facially  lazy  anyway,"  she 
told  him.  "I'm  tired  of  paddling,  let's  go  back. 
I  wonder  where  Lo  and  Francis  are.  They  must 
have  taken  quite  a  long  walk ;  they've  been  gone- for 
hours.    Could  they  get  lost!" 

"No,  not  Frank,  he  knows  more  about  these 
woods  than  the  guides.  They're  probably  home 
by  now." 

But  they  were  not  home  when  they  returned  to 
camp,  and  Mrs.  Preston  and  Louise  were  growing 
anxious. 

"Why,  they  started  at  three  o'clock,  and  it's 
five  now,"  Mrs.  Preston  said.  She  dropped  her 
sewing  in  her  lap  and  looked  toward  the  woods. 

For  another  hour  they  waited,  trying  to  put 
down  the  fear  that  kept  growing  in  their  minds. 
Even  Vert's  good  humor  suffered  a  temporary 
eclipse.  By  six  o'clock  they  were  thoroughly 
aroused. 

6  '  Go  shoot  off  a  gun,  Vert, ' '  Louise  said. 
Mrs.  Preston  went  over  to  the  guard's  tent  and 
conferred  with  Murray. 


172         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

Suddenly,  they  all  seemed  to  be  afraid. 
"It's  still  light,  and  nothing  could  happen  to 
them." 

Louise  tried  to  put  confidence  into  her  words, 
but  failed  utterly. 

"Oh,  let's  do  something.  Can't  we  go  out  and 
look  for  them?"  Polly  was  really  frightened. 
The  woods  seemed  to  be  closing  around  them  as 
the  sun  sank,  and  she  pictured  all  sorts  of  horrors, 
from  finding  Lois  dead,  to  breaking  the  news  to 
Mrs.  Farwell. 

"Yes,  come  on,  if  you  want  to.  "We'll  start  out 
on  this  trail,  Murray's  going  in  the  other  direc- 
tion. Wait  till  I  get  a  lantern. ' '  Vert  started  for 
his  tent. 

They  plunged  into  the  woods,  Polly  in  the  lead. 
After  they  had  gone  a  quarter  of  a  mile,  she  broke 
into  a  run.  Vert  fired  off  his  gun  at  regular  inter- 
vals, and  away  to  the  east,  they  heard  the  report 
of  Murray's  too. 

Fright  sometimes  takes  the  shape  of  silence.  It 
was  so  in  this  case.  They  walked  on,  without  ex- 
changing a  word,  watching  the  shadowy  trail 
ahead,  their  ears  strained  for  the  sound  of  voices. 
The  soft  earth  gave  way  under  their  rubber  soled 
shoes,  so  that  they  traveled  as  quietly  as  Indians. 

Just  when  the  oppressive  silence  and  the  hun- 
dred unnamed  fears  were  causing  the  muscles  in 
Polly's  throat  to  contract,  and  all  her  reasoning 


The  First  Day  at  Camp  173 

powers  to  give  way  to  panicky  terror,  so  that  she 
thought  she  would  faint,  a  shout  of  laughter,  clear 
and  bubbling,  as  only  Lois'  laughter  could  be, 
made  them  stop  short  in  their  tracks. 

"Lois!"  Polly  fairly  shrieked  the  word. 
"Where  are  you?" 

'  '  Oh,  hello, ' '  came  the  reply.    4  '  We  're  here. ' ' 

"Dive  into  the  right,  by  the  big  tree  and  you'll 
find  us,"  Francis  directed,  as  though  they  were 
playing  the  simplest  game  of  hide  and  go  seek. 

Vert  and  Polly  obeyed  and  discovered  the  cul- 
prits calmly  sitting  on  a  log,  in  a  cozy  inclosure. 
A  tin  target  was  tacked  to  one  of  the  trees  at 
the  farther  end  and  Vert  saw  an  arrow  lying  on 
the  ground  beneath  it. 

One  glance  at  their  cool  assurance  was  enough 
for  Polly.  Her  fear  turned,  as  is  often  the  case, 
to  an  unreasonable  anger,  and  she  turned  on  Lois 
with  a  Polly esque  fury. 

Poor  Lois  and  Frank  looked  at  each  other  in 
mute  amazement.  They  had  been  having  the 
nicest  sort  of  a  time,  and,  behold,  the  rage  of 
Polly  and  Vert  were  upon  them  for  no  apparent 
reason. 

"What  have  we  done?"  Lois  demanded,  when 
Polly  subsided. 

"Only  scared  us  out  of  a  seven  years'  growth. 
We'd  buried  you  with  a  bullet  in  each  of  your 
heads  and  put  lilies  on  your  graves,"  Vert  told 


174         Polly's  Slimmer  Vacation 


her.  "It's  long  past  six.  Didn't  you  hear  us 
firing?" 

Then,  for  the  first  time,  Lois  and  Frank  looked 
properly  guilty. 

"Oh,  Poll,  I'm  so  sorry.  We  must  have  fright- 
ened you.  We 'd  no  idea  what  time  it  was  and  we 
thought  the  firing  were  hunters. ' ' 

But  a  thousand  apologies  from  Lois  and  as 
many  explanations  from  Francis  could  not  soften 
Polly,  though  they  won  Louise's  and  Mrs.  Pres- 
ton's forgiveness  on  the  return  to  Camp. 

It  was  an  uncomfortable  evening.  For  the  first 
time  since  the  girls  had  known  each  other,  they 
went  to  bed  "mad"  and  woke  up  "mad,"  and 
stayed  "mad"  all  day. 

Had  it  not  been  for  a  slip  of  yellow  paper,  there 
is  no  knowing  how  long  they  would  have  kept  up 
the  foolish  silence  between  them.  Polly  had 
righteous  indignation  on  her  side,  caused  by  a 
nerve  racking  fright,  and  Lois  was  conscious  of 
that  injured  innocence  only  possible  to  a  clear  con- 
science. 


CHAPTER  Xni 


AT  HILL'S  CAMP 

"Want  to  drive  down  for  the  mail  with  me, 
Polly V  Vert  asked.  "I  can't  find  the  rest;  do 
you  know  where  they  are  f ' ' 

It  was  two  o'clock  of  the  day  before  the  excur- 
sion to  Hill's  Camp.  Lois  and  Polly  were  still 
keeping  up  their  quarrel,  not  that  either  of  them 
had  the  slightest  anger  against  the  other,  for  it 
had  now  become  merely  a  question  of  which  should 
speak  first. 

When  Vert  called  to  Polly  she  was  standing  be- 
side the  lake  looking  aimlessly  at  the  perfect  re- 
flection of  herself  mirrored  on  its  smooth  surface. 
She  was  thinking  how  terrible  it  would  be  if 
Lois  and  she  did  not  make  up  before  they 
returned  home.  So  absorbed  was  she,  that 
Vert  had  to  repeat  his  question  before  she  heard 
him. 

"Yes,  I'd  love  to  go;  I  clon't  know  where  the 
others  are.  I  saw  Francis  go  off  with  Murray," 
Polly  answered. 

"Where's  Lois  and  Louise?" 

175 


176         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


"Here  I  am,"  Louise  called.  "What  do  you 
want?" 

"Company  to  go  for  the  mail,"  Vert  told  her. 
"You  and  Polly  come  on,  I  have  the  wagon 
ready. ' ' 

"All  right,  I'd  love  to;  wait  till  I  get  my  hat," 
Louise  replied. 

The  mail  was  delivered  by  Eural  Free  Delivery 
to  within  five  miles  of  the  Preston  Camp.  The 
drive  to  the  main  road  where  the  tin  mail  box 
was  mailed  to  a  tree  was  through  the  woods.  The 
road  was  rough,  and  because  of  Louise,  Vert  let 
the  horses  amble  along  at  their  own  lazy  pace. 

"It  seems  good  to  get  away  from  camp.  I  al- 
ways went  for  the  mail,  last  year,"  Louise  said. 

"How  much  longer  are  you  going  to  feel  like  a 
rag  f ' '  Vert  asked.  There  was  real  concern  in  his 
voice.    He  turned  around  in  his  seat. 

"I  don't  feel  like  a  rag,  I  feel  fine,  only  I 
get  tired  quickly,  and  you  know  I'll  have  to  get 
over  that  by  September."  Louise  spoke  with  de- 
cision. 

"Then  you  are  going  to  college,  Lou?"  Polly 
asked.    ' 6 1  was  afraid  you  wouldn 't  be  able  to. ' ' 
"Of  course  I  am." 

"But  you  won't  be  able  to  go  out  for  the  team, 
will  you?" 

Louise  sighed  regretfully.  "No,  I  suppose 
not,"  she  said. 


At  Hill's  Camp 


177 


"I  wonder  who'll  be  captain  up  at  Seddon  Hall, 
this  year?"  Polly  inquired. 

"I  shouldn't  worry  about  it.  You  and  Lois  are 
sure  to  make  the  team,  no  matter  who's  captain." 

"The  big  team?"    Polly  was  incredulous. 

"Yes,  of  course." 

"Never!" 

' '  Silly  child,  of  course  you  will.  Do  you  know, 
Poll,  I'm  disappointed  in  you  and  Lo?"  Louise 
was  very  serious. 

"Why?" 

"I  never  thought  you'd  be  foolish  enough  to 
fight;  it's  so  childish.  You  think  the  rest  of  us 
don't  notice  it,  but  we  do.  Why  don't  you  make 
up?" 

Criticism  from  the  adored  Louise  was  a  serious 
thing.  Polly  said  what  a  million  other  girls  have 
said  before  her : 

"I'm  not  mad  at  Lo;  she's  mad  at  me." 

"That's  exactly  what  Lois  said  this  morning. 
When  I  get  back,  I'm  going  to  take  you  both  by 
the  neck  and  bang  your  heads  together."  But 
there  was  no  need  for  such  drastic  measures. 

Vert,  who  had  been  trying  not  to  listen  to  the 
conversation,  jumped  out  when  they  reached  the 
mail  box,  unlocked  it  and  returned  to  the  wagon 
with  an  armful  of  letters  and  papers. 

"Mrs.  R.  L.  Preston — Miss  Louise  Preston — 
half  a  dozen  fat  letters  as  usual — Miss  Lois  Far- 


178         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

well —  Hello!  Here's  a  telegram;  it's  for  you, 
Polly." 

' ' Give  it  to  me,  quick;  I  bet  I  know  what  it 
is."  Polly  almost  snatched  the  yellow  envelope 
and  tore  it  open. 

"Oh,  good,"  she  exclaimed;  ' ' Bob's  passed  his 
exams.  Listen  to  this,  'Hurray,  but  Latin  a  close 
shave.    Come  back  soon.'  " 

"Who's  Bob,  anyway!"  Vert  asked  testily. 

"Lois'  brother,"  Polly  answered,  surprised. 

Vert  gathered  up  the  reins,  and  turned  the 
horses  towards  home. 

"Humph!  I  thought  he  was  yours,  the  fuss 
you're  making.  What's  he  telegraphing  to  you 
for?"  he  asked. 

"Because  he's  the  best  friend  I've  got,"  Polly 
replied  crisply. 

"What's  he  taking  exams  for?" 

"To  get  into  Harvard." 

"  Oh ! "  Vert 's  entire  manner  changed ;  he  was 
once  again  the  smiling  "Billikins."  "Is  he  go- 
ing up  to  Harvard  this  year?" 

"Yes." 

"So  am  I." 

"Really." 

"Sure  thing." 

' '  Have  you  been  taking  exams  ? ' '  Polly  looked 
doubtful. 


At  Hill's  Camp 


179 


"Only  two,  this  year.  You  see,  I  tried  to  get 
in  last  year,  and — well,  I  didn't,  that  is — I  passed 
in  everything  but  two  things,  Geometry  and  His- 
tory. I  took  those  again  this  year,  and  now  I 
suppose  all  the  Profs  are  waiting  to  greet  me  with 
open  arms.  Gee !  I  hope  I  make  the  crew,"  he  fin- 
ished excitedly. 

"You!"  Polly  shook  her  head,  "you  won't, 
you're  too  passive,"  she  teased. 

But  Vert's  only  reply  was  a  Sphinx  like  smile. 

When  they  returned  to  camp,  Polly  was  the  first 
out  of  the  wagon.  "Lo,"  she  cried  excitedly, 
"come  here  quick." 

But  Lois  was  nowhere  in  sight. 

1 1  Where  under  the  sun  is  she  ?  I  must  tell  her. ' ' 
Polly  pranced  with  impatience. 

"I  bet  I  know,"  Francis  said;  "wait  a  second 
till  I  go  get  her."  He  was  off  at  a  run  into  the 
woods. 

"Don't  tell  what  it  is,"  Polly  called  after  him. 

He  returned  in  a  few  minutes  with  Lois.  They 
had  been  running  fast  and  were  both  out  of  breath. 

"What  is  it?"  Lois  demanded,  falling  into  a 
big  chair  and  fanning  herself  with  her  handker- 
chief. 

"This,"  and  Polly  held  the  telegram  before  her 
eyes.  "Bob  has  passed  all  his  exams,  even  Latin. 
Isn't  that  great?"  she  exclaimed. 


180         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

"Oh,  but  I'm  glad!"  Lois  jumped  up  and 
caught  Polly's  arm.  "When  did  it  come?  and 
what  does  'hurray'  mean?" 

Louise  and  her  mother  exchanged  glances. 

"And  that's  an  end  to  that,"  Louise  whispered. 

Saturday  morning  found  them  all  up  bright  and 
early,  busy  with  preparations  for  the  day. 

It  was  a  clear  cool  morning.  The  sun,  not  very 
high  in  the  sky,  shone  through  rifts  of  fleecy  white 
clouds  and  touched  first  one  point  and  then  an- 
other with  its  golden  rays. 

"For  goodness'  sake,  don't  forget  the  salt  this 
trip,  or  the  bottle  opener,"  Vert  beseeched. 

He  was  busy  packing  a  hamper  under  Mrs.  Pres- 
ton's direction.  His  remark,  however,  was  meant 
for  Louise,  who  was  busy  in  the  mess  tent. 

"The  last  time  I  went  on  one  of  these  trips, 
we — I  say  we,  though  of  course  I  was  only  com- 
pany then  and  I  had  nothing  to  say  about  it." 
He  screwed  his  eye  up  at  Polly  in  what  was  in- 
tended for  a  wink.  "We  forgot  them  both,  and 
ate  hard  boiled  eggs  and  drank  ginger  ale  flavored 
with  glass  shavings." 

"Vert,  you're  a  wretch.  I  promise  we  won't 
forget  a  thing  this  trip,"  Louise  assured  him, 
"And  now  come  and  eat  breakfast.  It's  about 
ready,  isn't  it,  Murray?" 

Murray  nodded  his  head  solemnly  as  he  placed 


At  Hill's  Camp 


181 


the  steaming  coffee  pot  on  the  table,  and  they  all 
sat  down. 

" Who's  going  to  paddle,  who?"  asked  Francis. 
* 1  There  are  two  canoes  going,  so  that  means  three 
in  each." 

"Won't  that  be  a  tight  squeeze?"  Mrs.  Preston 

said.    ' '  Hadn 't  I  better  stay  home  ? ' ' 
"No,"  chorused  everybody,  and  Francis  added: 
"It  will  be  fun;  why  there'll  really  be  room 

to  spare." 

"Better  part  your  hair  in  the  middle,  Mother," 
Louise  teased,    "You  know  how  tippy  they  are." 

"Oh,  Louise,  don't;  you  know  how  nervous  I 
am." 

Mrs.  Preston,  though  she  had  always  camped 
during  the  summer,  had  never  lost  her  fear  of  be- 
ing tipped  in  a  canoe. 

"You  better  go  with  us,  Mrs.  Preston;  then 
you'll  be  safe,"  Vert  said.  "I  wouldn't  trust 
Francis." 

"Who's  us?"  inquired  Louise. 

"Polly,  of  course."  Vert  was  quite  matter  of 
fact.  "You  don't  suppose  I've  spent  all  this  time 
teaching  her  how  to  paddle  properly — it  was  hard 
work  too.  An  Indian  taught  her  first;  shocking 
bad  teacher  he  was  too.  Wasn't  he  Minnie  Ha, 
Ha?" 

"I  never  said  an  Indian  taught  me  how,"  Polly 


182         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

denied  stoutly,  "and  you  know  it.  I  said  I  pad- 
dled like  an  Indian,  and  I  was  only  fooling.  And," 
she  added,  with  fine  conceit,  "  I  do  too,  better  than 
most." 

"Minnie  Ha,  Ha,"  Vert  said  the  last  as  if  it 
were  a  forced  laugh,  "goes  with  me  anyway." 

"H'm,  I  know  why  that  is,  you  know  I'll  do 
all  the  work,  lazy  'Billikins.'  I'll  go  with  you 
only  because  I  want  to  know  Mrs.  Preston  is  in 
safe  hands,"  Polly  teased. 

"Then,  Louise,  you  go  with  us,"  Lois  said. 
"May  I  paddle  stern,  Frank!"  she  asked. 

"Yes,  on  the  way  home,"  he  told  her.  "You 
mustn't  get  tired;  you  might  want  to  enter  for 
some  contest  or  something, ' '  he  added,  with  a  sig- 
nificant glance. 

By  nine,  they  are  ready  to  start.  Vert's  boat 
started  first  with  Mrs.  Preston,  Polly  and  one  of 
the  lunch  baskets. 

"Now,  don't  splash  any  more  than  you  can  help, 
Minnie  Ha,  Ha,"  he  said,  as  they  shoved  off  from 
shore.    "Try  to  be  a  credit  to  my  teaching." 

Francis'  canoe  followed  close  behind,  so  that 
conversation  was  possible.  When  they  reached 
the  end  of  the  lake,  Vert  called  to  Lois : 

"Look  out  for  your  head,  we're  going  through 
the  tunnel  now."  But  instead  they  got  out  of 
the  canoes  and  carried  them  over  the  portage  to 
the  next  lake,  a  quarter  of  a  mile  beyond. 


At  twelve  o'clock,  they  struck  camp  and  had 
luncheon.  Page  183 


I 


At  Hill's  Camp 


183 


At  twelve  o'clock,  they  struck  camp  and  had 
luncheon.  It  was  a  merry  affair;  nothing  more 
serious  than  the  butter  was  forgotten,  and  the  jam 
took  its  place. 

"How  much  longer  before  we  get  there V9  Polly 
inquired. 

"Getting  tired  already?"  Frank  asked. 

"No,  indeed,  I  was  just  wondering.' ' 

"We  could  be  there  by  one,  if  we  wanted  to,  but 
nothing  begins  before  two,  so  we'll  stay  here  and 
rest  for  a  while.  It's  only  about  half  an  hour's 
more  paddling.*' 

They  left  the  baskets  under  a  tree — the  one 
empty,  the  other  filled  with  the  supper,  for  it  was 
no  use  carrying  them  the  extra  distance. 

As  they  reached  Hill's  Camp,  they  met  lots  of 
other  boats,  and  whether  they  knew  the  people  or 
rot  they  called  greetings.  As  Louise  had  said 
chere  was  quite  a  crowd  and  the  broad  open  space 
that  led  up  to  the  rather  imposing  log  cabin  from 
the  largest  lake  of  the  chain,  was  dotted  with  par- 
ties. The  Prestons'  were  about  the  last  to  arrive, 
and  soon  after  they  had  registered  in  the  big  guest 
book,  the  games  began. 

There  were  relay  races  for  the  boys,  potato 
races  for  the  girls,  and  obstacle  races  for  them 
both. 

Then  came  the  more  serious  games. 

Rifle  contest  for  the  boys,  in  which  Frank 


184 


Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


showed  himself  no  mean  marksman,  though  a  mili- 
tary man  from  another  camp  carried  off  the  cup. 

Next  on  the  program,  was  the  girls '  archery 
contest,  and  much  to  Polly 's  and  Louise's  sur- 
prise, Lois  entered. 

Frank  selected  her  bow  for  her  and  strung  it, 
and  after  discarding  several,  selected  an  arrow. 

"What's  gotten  into  Lo?"  Polly  gasped.  "I 
know  she  has  never  shot  an  arrow  in  her  life. " 

"She  seems  to  know  how  to  go  about  it." 
Louise  looked  wonderingly  at  Lois'  apparent  as- 
surance. 

"I  smell  a  rat,"  Vert  announced,  raising  his 
eyebrows  and  looking  crosseyed.  He  had  on  the 
blue  checked  shirt  of  the  first  day,  and  looked 
more  absurd  than  ever. 

"Tell  us  about  it,  Billikins,"  Polly  begged. 

"A  tin  target  nailed  to  a  tree,  an  arrow  on  the 
ground — I  see — I  see."  Vert  was  shaking  his 
head  from  side  to  side. 

"Where?"  Louise  demanded. 

"In  the  little  quiet  dell,"  Vert  replied. 

"Of  course,"  Polly  exclaimed.  "That  day  we 
thought  they  were  lost,  that's  what  they  were  up 
to.    Frank  was  teaching  Lois." 

"Watch,  it's  her  turn  now,"  Louise  warned. 

All  eyes  were  on  Lois,  as  she  stepped  up  to  the 
line,  raised  her  bow  and  let  fly  the  arrow. 

"The  red,  good!"  Vert  whispered. 


At  Hill's  Camp 


185 


The  next  time  it  was  the  blue,  then  the  red  again. 

"How  many  arrows  has  she?"  Polly  asked. 

"Five  more,  look  at  that;  now  she's  done  it!" 
Vert  exclaimed,  as  a  shout  went  up  when  Lois' 
fourth  arrow  hit  the  black  bull's  eye. 

The  fifth  hit  the  blue,  and  Lois,  escorted  tri- 
umphantly by  Frank,  joined  the  others. 

"Well,  of  all  the  sly  ones,"  Polly  began;  "how 
did  you  ever  learn  so  fast!" 

"Oh,  I  had  lots  of  time  for  practice,  and  Frank's 
a  wonderful  teacher,"  Lois  replied,  grinning;  it 
was  such  fun,  having  fooled  them  all. 

"That's  where  you  were  the  day  Bob's  wire 
came.  No  wonder  we  couldn't  rind  you,"  Polly 
said.    "Look,  it's  all  over.    I  wonder  who  won." 

"Lois  has,"  Frank  said  quietly,  referring  to  a 
card  in  his  hand.    "I've  been  keeping  count." 

He  was  right.  Mr.  Hill  presented  her  with  the 
little  silver  loving  cup,  with  his  most  gallant  bow. 

"We  are  always  glad  to  see  the  visitors  win," 
he  said,  smiling. 

The  water  sports  started  next.  Vert  entered 
for  the  canoe  race,  and,  much  to  Polly's  delight, 
tipped  over  just  before  he  reached  the  landing. 
He  was  leaning  over  too  far,  in  his  attempt  to  steer 
with  his  body,  and  so  save  time. 

"Ah,  stop  laughing,"  he  said  to  her  later,  when 
he  had  changed  his  bathing  suit  for  clothes.  "I 
suppose  I'll  never  hear  the  end  of  this." 


186         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

' 1  Oh,  yes,  you  will, ' '  she  answered ; 1 1  you  '11  hear 
about  the  end  of  this  race,  as  long  as  I  have  the 
power  to  laugh.  Oh  dear,  oh  dear,  Billikins,  if 
you  could  have  seen  how  funny  you  looked.' ' 

"Well,  let's  see  you  do  something  better;  it's 
your  turn  now. ' '  Polly  had  entered  for  the  swim- 
ming. 

"All  right,  here  I  go,  wish  me  luck,"  she  called, 
and  ran  to  the  raft. 

Vert  counted  it  one  of  the  most  unfortunate,  but 
at  the  same  time,  the  kindest  thing  the  fates  had 
ever  done,  when  they  made  Polly  lose  that  race. 

He  knew  she  should  have  won  it,  was  far  the 
best  swimmer  there,  and  he  never  understood  why 
she  came  in  only  fourth. 

Polly  was  not  telling  anybody  that  the  second 
she  touched  the  water,  her  arm  had  suddenly  gone 
quite  lame.  It  was  on  account  of  the  long  and 
unaccustomed  paddling.  That's  why,  too,  that  she 
would  make  no  excuses. 

About  five,  everybody  began  to  leave. 

Our  party  were  in  the  best  of  spirits,  and  made 
light  of  the  trip  ahead.  They  picked  up  the  bas- 
kets where  they  had  left  them,  but  it  was  not  until 
seven  that  they  decided  to  eat. 

"I  can't  paddle  another  foot  without  food," 
Polly  declared. 

"Who  ever  heard  of  paddling  a  foot?"  Vert 


At  Hill's  Camp 


187 


teased.    "Do  you  mean  a  stroke?    Here,  let  me 
open  that  basket.    "What  the — ! ' ' 
"Empty!" 

The  word  came  from  every  throat,  for  in  the 
once  neatly  filled  hamper,  there  was  nothing  but 
plates  and  boxes,  while  on  top  was  a  note  scrawled 
on  an  envelope.    It  read: 

"Much  obliged  for  the  delightful  repast. — A 
hunter." 

It  was  tragic,  they  were  so  hungry,  but  it  was 
funny  too.  They  laughed  over  it,  the  rest  of  the 
way  home. 

Lois  and  Polly  were  still  enjoying  it  as  they 
undressed  later  that  night,  after  a  dinner  that 
made  up  for  the  loss. 

"I  never  saw  anything  funnier  than  Vert's  face 
when  he  opened  that  basket,"  Polly  laughed. 

"I  know  it,  haven't  we  had  a  lark  to-day ?" 
Lois  agreed.    "I  wish  Bet  had  been  here." 

"So  do  I,  and  Bob.  Lo,  wasn't  it  great  he 
passed?" 

"You  bet,  I'm  glad  you  got  the  wire  when  you 
did,  too." 

"So  am  I.  I  was  going  to  tell  you  I  was  sorry 
though  anyway." 

"So  was  I.  Say,  Poll,  don't  let's  ever  have  an- 
other silence ;  it  was  awful. "  Lois,  already  in  her 
bunk,  spoke  feelingly. 


188         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

4 4 No,  for  goodness'  sake,  don't  let's,"  Polly  re- 
plied with  equal  feeling.  And  after  a  hearty  kiss, 
she  blew  out  the  candle,  and  jumped  into  bed. 


CHAPTER  XIV 


THE  MYSTERY  SOLVED 

"What's  happened  to  the  Kent  Place?  It's  all 
closed  up, ' '  Lois  inquired. 

She  was  sitting  with  Polly  and  Mrs.  Farwell  in 
their  favorite  summer  house,  one  afternoon  late,  a 
couple  of  days  after  their  return  from  camp.  As 
usual,  they  were  having  lemonade.  Bob  was  out 
bass  fishing  with  Uncle  Cy. 

To  say  that  it  was  hot,  would  be  to  underesti- 
mate the  intensity  of  the  sun.    It  was  scorching. 

Lois  asked  her  question  idly,  with  no  desire  for 
an  immediate  answer. 

"They  are  away,"  Mrs.  Farwell  replied. 
"Maud  is — "  She  stopped;  if  the  girls  were 
really  interested  they  would  ask  for  more.  She 
was  not  going  to  divulge  her  secret  unless  she  had 
eager  listeners. 

"Where?  Have  they  gone  for  good?"  Polly 
asked,  feeling,  rather  than  knowing,  that  there 
was  more  to  follow. 

"I  hope  not,"  Mrs.  Farwell  replied.  "I  had  a 
letter  from  Father  and  he  seems  to  think  they  will 
return  shortly. ' J 

189 


190         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

Lois  sat  up  straight,  surprise  written  in  every 
line  of  her  face. 

"What  does  Daddie  know  about  it!"  she  de- 
manded. 

"I'll  tell  you,  if  you  really  want  to  hear.  I 
would  have  told  you  before  this,  but  you  were  so 
excited  over  your  camp  trip,  and  I  wanted  to  be 
sure  you  were  interested."  Mrs.  Farwell  paused, 
then  added  impressively,  1 1  If  you  will,  you  can  be 
of  the  greatest  help." 

"Why,  Mumsy  darling,  what  are  you  talking 
about?    What  can  we  do?"  Lois  asked. 

"Please  tell  us,  Aunt  Kate.  I  can't  imagine 
what  it  can  be  that  would  have  something  to  do 
with  Dr.  Farwell,  the  Banks  and  us."  Polly 
leaned  forward  in  her  eagerness. 

"Do  you  remember  the  day  you  asked  Maud  to 
go  to  the  village  in  the  pony  cart  with  you?" 

"Yes,  and  she  cried  and  wouldn't  go.  Well?" 
Lois  waited. 

"You  came  home  and  told  me  about  it.  Then 
you  were  so  taken  up  with  your  visit  to  camp  that 
you  completely  forgot  the  incident." 

"But  you  didn't ;  this  is  getting  exciting,"  Polly 
put  in. 

"No,  I  didn't.  The  day  after  you  left  I  went 
over  to  call  on  Mrs.  Banks.  She  is  a  charming 
woman."  Mrs.  Farwell  paused,  then  continued: 
"She  has  had  a  great  deal  of  trouble.    She  told 


The  Mystery  Solved 


191 


me  something  of  her  life.  She  has  lived  in  India 
most  of  the  time;  her  husband  was  an  officer  in 
the  English  Army.  Maud  was  born  in  Simla. 
When  she  was  old  enough  to  travel,  Mrs.  Banks 
took  her  to  England  and  left  her  with  her  hus- 
band's sister  until  she  was  five  years  old.  She 
came  back  to  India  then  and  grew  up  there.  Very 
often  there  were  no  children  in  the  village  where 
they  were  stationed  and  Maud  and  her  father  be- 
came great  companions.  She  was  never  very 
strong,  and  being  so  much  alone  she  was  old  for 
her  age.  When  she  was  nine  her  father  died  of 
fever;  he  was  desperately  ill  for  days."  Mrs. 
Farwell's  face  softened  when  she  remembered  the 
look  in  Mrs.  Banks '  eyes  when  she  told  of  it.  '  6  He 
died  finally  and  Maud's  grief  was  terrible,  so  ter- 
rible, that  for  a  while  they  feared  her  mind  would 
be  affected.  That  was  only  a  year  ago ;  Maud  is 
just  ten  now.  Mrs.  Banks  took  her  to  England 
and  then  brought  her  here.  She  is  better,  but 
she  has  these  terrible  days  of  depression,  and  for 
some  curious  reason,  she  thinks  her  mother  is  in 
some  way  responsible  for  her  father's  death." 

While  Mrs.  Farwell  had  been  talking,  Lois  and 
Polly's  expression  had  changed  from  interest  to  a 
hurt  wonder. 

' 'Don't  stop,"  Lois  said  softly. 

"Istold  Daddie  about  it  when  he  and  Eoddy 
were  here  for  over  Sunday  while  you  were  away. 


192         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

They  were  both  interested.  Roddy  wanted  to  do 
something  at  once. ' ' 

1 '  He  would, ' '  Polly  smiled  gently.  ' <  What  hap- 
pened ?" 

"X  asked  Mrs.  Banks  to  bring  Maud  over  to  tea. 
She  did — though  the  poor  child  didn't  want  to 
come — and  Daddie  got  her  to  talk  to  him,  and 
even  go  for  a  walk.  They  were  gone  for  quite  a 
while,  and  when  Maud  came  back  she  seemed  much 
brighter. ' ' 

"Daddie  always  makes  people  brighter,' '  Lois 
said,  tears  in  her  eyes — ' 6 but  go  on." 

"We  didn't  say  anything  before  her,  just  talked 
about  you  two  and  school,  things  that  should  have 
interested  her,  for  a  little  while,  and  then  they 
went  home." 

Mrs.  Farwell  stopped  to  sip  her  lemonade. 
Polly  and  Lois  kept  an  expectant  silence. 

"That  evening,  after  Maud  was  in  bed,  Roddy 
went  over  for  Mrs.  Banks  and  brought  her  here. 
Daddie  and  I  were  on  the  terrace.  She  wanted  to 
know  what  Dad  thought,  the  minute  she  came,  and 
he  told  her  that  Maud  could  easily  be  cured.  She 
was  suffering  from  an  exaggerated  case  of  nerves, 
that  a  little  while  in  a  sanitarium  with  this  new 
treatment  of  suggestion  would  be  all  she  needed. 
After  that,  she  would  of  course  have  to  keep  well 
and  happy,  and  above  all,  associate  with  other 
girls." 


The  Mystery  Solved 


193 


"That's  where  we  come  in,"  Lois  said  quietly. 

"Yes,  Daddie  says  you  can  be  the  real  doctors 
if  you  will,  but  you  mustn't  let  Maud  know  that 
there  is  anything  the  matter." 

"Oh,  of  course  not,  we'll  just  keep  her  so  busy 
having  a  good  time  that  she  won't  have  time  for 
the  blues.  That's  the  way  we  treat  the  homesick 
girls  at  school." 

Polly's  eyes  sparkled  at  the  prospect.  She 
loved  "taking  people  in  hand, ' '  making  them  either 
glad  or  sorry.  It  appealed  to  her  sense  of  power 
and  leadership,  inherited  probably  from  Aunt 
Hannah. 

Lois  accepted  the  charge  through  pure  kindness 
of  heart.  She  knew  she  would  not  enjoy  it,  Maud 
was  thoroughly  uninteresting,  but  she  was  sorry 
for  her  and  when  Lois'  pity  was  touched,  there 
was  no  limit  to  her  charity. 

Of  the  two  she  deserved  the  more  credit  for 
what  followed,  but  it  was  Polly,  with  her  way  of 
sweeping  obstacles  before  her  that  got  it. 

Bob  broke  in  upon  the  discussion  at  this  part; 
he  was  hot  and  tired,  but  what  was  worse,  he  had 
caught  no  fish. 

"Uncle  Cy  says  the  wind's  wrong.  I  don't  be- 
lieve it.  What  possible  power  has  the  wind  over 
fish?"  he  growled,  throwing  himself  into  a  chair, 
while  his  mother  poured  out  a  glass  of  lemonade 
for  him. 


194        Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

Polly  was  silent  for  a  minute,  then  she  gave  a 
sharp  little  nod  of  her  head,  a  habit  she  had  when 
she  wanted  to  dismiss  one  subject  to  give  her  at- 
tention to  another. 

"I  suppose,' '  she  said  mischievously,  "that  you 
blame  it  on  the  fishes'  whims.' ' 

6 i Have  fishes  whims,  I  wonder,"  Lois  asked  so 
dreamily,  that  they  all  laughed. 

"Of  course,  or  they  would  have  swallowed  Bob- 
bie 's  hook,  and  then  he  would  be  nice  and  cheerful, 
instead  of  dreadfully  cross."  Polly  looked  imp- 
ishly out  of  the  corner  of  her  eye,  an  exagger- 
ated concern  in  the  lowered  tones  of  her  voice. 

"Poll,  some  day  I'm  going  to  box  your  ears." 

"Bob!"  Mrs.  Farwell  was  really  horrified. 

"Can't  help  it,  Mother,  she  deserves  it.  I  don't 
know  what's  come  over  her  lately,  she's  been  an 
abominable  little  tease  ever  since  she  got  back 
from  camp." 

"She  thinks  she's  talking  to  Vert,"  Lois  ex- 
plained. "That's  the  way  they'd  go  at  it  all  day 
long." 

"Well,  please  remember  I'm  not  Vert,  and  be- 
have like  Polly  Pendleton.  What  do  you  say  to  a 
set  of  tennis  before  dinner?"  Bob  asked. 

"I  say  it's  too  hot,"  Mrs.  Farwell  said  de- 
cidedly. 6 1  You  '11  all  have  heat  prostration.  Can 't 
you  think  of  something  less  strenuous  to  do?" 


The  Mystery  Solved  195 


" Let's  plan  how  we  can  pull  Maud  out  of  her- 
self, "  Lois  suggested.  "You  know  all  about  her, 
don't  you,  Bob?" 

"The  kid  next  door?  Yes,  I  talked  to  her  one 
day  over  the  fence.  I  had  the  dogs  with  me ;  she's 
crazy  about  Sandy.  You'll  have  to  be  awfully 
decent  to  her  when  she  comes  back. ' ' 

"That  sounds  easy;  but  she  probably  won't 
want  to  look  at  us.  She 's  sure  to  remember  that 
she  wept  quarts  every  time  we  came  in  sight." 
Lois  was  pessimistic. 

"Let's  give  a  party  of  some  sort,  ask  everybody 
from  the  village  to  come,  she  won't  feel  half  as 
shy  in  a  crowd,"  Polly  suggested.  "And  besides, 
I  ought  to  entertain  once  before  we  go,  to  return 
the  lawn  party  Mrs.  Hopper  gave." 

"That's  not  a  bad  idea,  Polly,"  Mrs.  Farwell 
remarked.  "If  Maud  is  going  to  live  here,  noth- 
ing could  be  better  than  having  her  meet  some  of 
the  people." 

"What  kind  of  a  party?"  Lois  asked.  "Let's 
have  it  different  from  most  of  them.  I'm  tired 
of  tea  on  lawns,  and  tennis." 

"Oh,  I'm  not,  I  thought  we'd  have  one  just  like 
the  Hoppers',  so  Ruth  and  Anita  could  play 
tennis  with  Bob  again,  he'd  love  that."  Polly 
expected  a  quick  denial.  But  instead,  Bob  said 
slowly : 


196         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


"That  wouldn't  be  so  bad,  I've  been  down  to 
see  them  quite  often  since  you've  been  away. 
Nita  asked  me  to  teach  her  how  to  play  and  you 've 
no  idea  how  well  she  's  getting  on. ' ' 

Polly  whistled. 

"Oh,  let's  have  it  original,"  Lois  begged;  "you 
suggest  something,  Mother." 
' '  How  about  a  picnic  ? ' ' 
"Where?" 

"At  Needle's  Point,  we  went  over  there  in  the 
boat  last  week,  it's  an  ideal  spot." 

"But  we  couldn't  get  very  many  in  the  Tiddle- 
dewinks,"  Lois  objected. 

"Some  of  us  could  ride,"  Polly  put  in;  "it's  a 
lovely  ride  over." 

"Why  not  have  it  a  supper  picnic,  instead  of 
a  luncheon  ! ' '  Bob  said.  ' '  There  '11  be  a  moon  next 
week,  and  some  of  us  could  go  in  the  boat,  and  the 
rest  in  carriages." 

< <  Why  not  have  a  straw  ride ?  That 's  it!"  Polly 
exclaimed  excitedly.  "The  ones  who  go  in  the 
boat  can  come  home  in  the  wagon,  and  the  other 
way  round." 

"Great !  That  ought  to  be  fun.  Now  who's  to 
go?"  Bob's  interest  was  aroused,  Polly  noticed 
it  and  answered  rather  flatly : 

"Oh,  everybody,  everybody  and  Maud." 

"When  will  we  have  it?  What  will  we  have  to 
eat?    And  what  will  we  do  when  we  get  there?" 


The  Mystery  Solved 


197 


Lois  was  off  on  the  thing  she  really  loved,  plan- 
ning.   "How  far  is  Needle's  Point,  Polly ?" 

"It  depends ;  there's  the  shore  road,  that's  quite 
a  ways,  and  then,  there's  the  short  cut.  The  long 
road  takes  about  two  hours  to  drive  to,  but  going 
by  the  short  cut  doesn't  take  half  as  long." 

"Let's  drive  there  to-night  and  look  it  over," 
Lois  suggested.    "May  we,  Mother?" 

"Yes,  dear,  if  you  start  early  and  get  back  be- 
fore dark." 

"You  come  too,  Aunt  Kate,  it  will  be  a  wonder- 
ful night  for  a  drive,"  Polly  begged.  "We'll  all 
get  cooled  off." 

"Come  on  up  to  the  house,  and  let's  get  Sarah 
to  hustle  dinner,  I'm  starved  anyway,"  Bob  said, 
suiting  the  action  to  the  words. 

"I'll  go  tell  Tim  to  hitch  up  Banker  and  bring 
him  round  at  seven.  We  ought  to  be  through  by 
then."  Polly  started  tovrards  the  stable,  while 
the  others  kept  on  to  the  house. 

"Wait  a  shake,  and  I'll  come  with  you,"  Bob 
called.    "I  haven't  seen  Jack  and  Jill  ail  day." 

"All  right,  come  on,"  Polly's  tone  was  indiffer- 
ent, but  the  pucker  between  her  eyes  had  myste- 
riously disappeared. 

They  found  Needle  Point  on  close  inspection  to 
be  an  ideal  picnic  ground.  The  land  ran  out  in 
a  long  sharp  point  into  the  sound,  which  insured 
its  being  cool.    There  was  a  grove  of  pines  on  the 


198         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

end  and  the  ground  was  carpeted  with  slippery 
brown  needles. 

* ' It's  perfect,"  Lois  announced,  "just  as  it  is, 
but  it  would  be  a  fairy  garden  if  we  could  string 
dozens  of  Japanese  lanterns  around." 

"I'll  write  Uncle  Eoddy  and  ask  him  to  send 
some  up  from  the  city,"  Polly  said.  "Lois,  we'll 
leave  the  decorations  to  you.  You  always  made 
a  hit  with  them  at  school.  Eemember  the  tent  you 
rigged  up  for  the  Seniors?" 

"Yes,  Poll!  No,  I  won't  tell,  but  I've  got  an 
idea,  such  an  idea.   I'll  show  it  to  you." 

"If  you're  giving  this  out  to  committees," 
laughed  Mrs.  Farwell,  "let  me  take  charge  of  the 
supper.  I'll  talk  to  Sarah  and  between  us  we'll 
plan  it  all." 

"What  will  I  do?"  Polly  asked. 

"You  make  out  a  list  of  the  guests,  you  know 
them  all,  and  we  don't.  I'll  help  you  all  I  can," 
Mrs  Farwell  suggested.  "And  Bob  will  have  to 
plan  the  amusements.  That  will  give  you  some- 
thing to  think  about,  and  now  we  must  go  home." 

None  of  them  had  much  to  say  on  the  return  trip, 
they  were  all  so  busy  planning  for  their  part  of  the 
arrangements. 

As  they  drove  up  to  the  carriage  block,  Lois  said 
solemnly : 

"It  will  never  be  a  success." 

"Well,  why  not?"  Bob  demanded. 


The  Mystery  Solved  199 


" Because  Bet  isn't  here,  and  no  party  ever 
'goes'  without  Bet." 

' ' Then,"  laughed  Mrs.  Farwell,  an  arm  around 
each  of  the  girls  as  they  walked  up  the  piazza 
steps,  "for  pity's  sake  get  Bet;  write  her  and  tell 
her  she  must  come." 

Polly  laughed  with  the  rest.  In  her  own  mind 
she  had  doubts  about  the  success  of  the  party  too, 
but  Betty  did  not  figure  in  them. 

She  stood  in  front  of  the  glass  for  a  long  time 
that  night.  The  reflection  of  her  heavy  hair  tied 
low  in  her  neck  with  a  perky  bow  caused  her  face 
to  pucker  into  a  frown,  and  the  sight  of  her  short 
skirts,  they  reached  just  a  little  below  her  knees, 
brought  a  pout  of  disgust  to  her  usually  smiling 
lips.  She  had  reached  a  turning  point.  For  the 
first  time  in  her  life  she  wanted  to  be  grown  up. 


CHAPTER  XV 


POLLY  ENTERTAINS 

"The  mysterious  child  is  coming  home  to- 
night/ '  Polly  announced,  as  she  entered  the  dining- 
room  at  luncheon  time  on  Monday.  She  was  late, 
and  the  rest  were  already  seated  at  the  table. 
They  looked  up  in  surprise. 

"Who  told  you?"  Lois  demanded. 

"Nora.  I've  been  chinning  with  her  over  the 
back  fence.  She  says  Maud's  much  better  and 
wants  to  be  with  her  mother  all  the  time  now." 

"Oh,  I  am  so  glad,"  Mrs.  Farwell  exclaimed. 
She  understood  better  than  the  others  what  this 
would  mean  to  Mrs.  Banks.  "What  else  did  Nora 
say,  Polly?" 

"Not  much,  she's  busy  opening  the  house. 
They're  coming  home  about  six  o'clock." 

* 6 1  think  it  would  be  nice  if  you  took  some  flow- 
ers over.  We  have  any  quantity  of  nasturtiums 
and  sweet  peas." 

"That's  a  good  idea,  Mother.  Bob,  you  have  to 
help,  because — "  Lois  stopped. 

"Because  what?"  Bob  asked. 

"Because  I  have  a  favor  to  ask  of  you,  that  will 

200 


Polly  Entertains 


201 


take  some  time.    I'll  tell  you  later,  it's  a  secret." 

After  luncheon  they  went  out  to  find  Tim  and  de- 
mand flowers. 

"We  want  lots  of  them,  Tim,  armfulls,"  Polly 
teased;  "the  very  nicest  you  can  give  us." 

Tim  looked  rueful,  the  garden  was  his  special 
spot  and  he  could  never  see  the  sense  in  taking  the 
flowers  from  their  proper  place  to  stick  them  in 
glass  vases,  to  wilt  in  stuffy  rooms,  but  Polly's 
slightest  wish  was  law. 

"Help  yourselves,"  he  said,  without  enthusiasm. 
"I'll  fetch  you  the  basket  and  the  shears." 

For  an  hour  they  clipped  and  picked  nastur- 
tiums, sweet  peas,  poppies,  some  late  roses — the 
very  best  of  the  Pendleton  gardens. 

They  carried  the  basket  over  to  the  Kent  place, 
and  Nora  let  them  arrange  them  to  suit  them- 
selves. 

"Sweet  peas  and  roses  for  the  beautiful  lady," 
Polly  said  on  the  threshold  of  Mrs.  Banks'  bed- 
room, and  they  filled  a  big  china  bowl  for  her  bed 
table. 

When  they  left,  the  "haunted  house"  was  a 
bower,  and  to  Maud  and  her  mother  on  their  re- 
turn, those  flowers  were  a  far  more  adequate  wel- 
come than  any  words  would  have  been. 

"May  I  drive  Bob  to  Needle  Point,  Poll?"  Lois 
asked,  as  they  walked  back  up  the  hill. 

"Of  course,  but  I  think  you  might  tell  me  the 


202 


Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


giddy  secret."   Polly  tried  hard  to  look  abused. 

"I  won't,  it's  a  secret.  I  don't  want  to  tell 
him  but  I'm  afraid  to  do  it  by  myself,"  Lois 
said. 

" Cheer  up,  Poll,"  Bob  called,  as  they  started 
off  a  little  later.  ' '  I  '11  tell  you  all  about  it  to-night. 
Where  are  we  bound  for?"  he  added,  as  Lois 
turned  Banker's  head  in  the  direction  of  the  vil- 
lage. 

" Never  mind,  you'll  soon —  Oh!  Bob,  I'm 
scared."  Lois  dropped  her  air  of  mystery.  "I 
have  an  idea,  and  I  know  it's  a  good  one,  but  I 
don't  know  just  exactly  how  to  carry  it  out." 

" Let's  hear  it." 

6 i  It  was  Poll  that  made  me  think  of  it  when  she 
reminded  me  of  the  tent  I  made  up  at  school. ' ' 
"Go  on." 

"Well  it  just  popped  into  my  head  that  there 
was  a  camp  of  gypsies  beyond  the  village  a  little 
way.  We  passed  them  the  other  day  and — " 
Lois  paused  and  waited  for  some  sign  of  encour- 
agement or  disapproval  from  Bob.  Like  most 
people  who  think  up  wild  schemes  she  wanted  as- 
surance.   She  got  it. 

"You  mean  get  a  real  gypsy  to  come  and  tell 
fortunes?"  Bob  exclaimed,  slapping  her  affection- 
ately on  the  back.  ' 1  Lo,  that 's  an  idea  worthy  of  a 
genius." 


Polly  Entertains 


203 


"Do  you  think  they'd  like  it?  Perhaps  they 
might  think  it  was  wrong  to  have  fortunes  told." 

" Nonsense,  of  course  they'll  like  it,  nobody  be- 
lieves in  the  silly  rot  they  tell  you  anyway.  It's 
original  and  they're  sure  to  like  it." 

"But  how  will  we  get  hold  of  one?  I'm  scared 
to  death  of  them,  they  all  look  so  bloodthirsty," 
Lois  complained. 

"I'll  do  it,  I'll  find  the  chief  or  king  or  what- 
ever they  call  the  boss,  and  tell  him  what 
we  want,"  Bob  assured  her.  "You  stay  in  the 
cart." 

They  were  in  sight  of  the  camp  by  now,  a  clus- 
ter of  tents  and  two  or  three  gypsy  caravans,  a 
string  of  lean  and  half  starved  horses  grazed  to- 
gether on  the  burned  stubble.  Here  and  there, 
charred  spots  on  the  ground  showed  black  under 
the  tripods  that  held  the  big  iron  cooking  pots.  A 
group  of  men  were  smoking  and  talking  off  to  one 
side,  while  all  over  the  rest  of  the  clearing,  it 
seemed  to  Bob  and  Lois,  there  were  women  and 
children,  any  number  of  them.  The  women,  for 
the  most  part,  were  gaudily  dressed,  and  fat. 
They  lolled  about  in  slovenly  heaps,  while  the  chil- 
dren squalled  and  played  around  them,  looking 
very  brown  and  scrawny  in  comparison. 

Bob  approached  the  men,  touched  his  cap,  and 
in  a  few  words  explained  what  he  wanted.  They 


204         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

listened  attentively,  but  with  a  condescension  that 
was  almost  insolent,  and  when  he  had  finished, 
one  of  the  men,  without  a  word,  led  him  over  to 
the  group  of  women,  singled  out  a  big,  sleepy 
looking  creature  and  then  asked  abruptly: 
"She  do?" 

"lSTo,"  Bob  said,  equally  abrupt.  "She's  too 
fat."  He  rather  expected  to  be  knifed  at  once, 
and  was  agreeably  surprised  when  the  woman 
laughed  good  naturedly  and  jangled  her  bangles. 

"She  tell  good  fortunes,"  said  the  man  indif- 
ferently, as  he  beckoned  to  another  one.  This 
time  it  was  a  pretty  girl,  dark  eyed  and  slender. 
Bob  decided  she  fitted  in  with  his  idea  of  a  gypsy 
and  struck  a  bargain  with  the  man. 

"She  can't  tell  fortunes  good,"  he  said;  "she's 
too  young." 

"I  don't  care,  let  her  say  any  old  thing,  no- 
body's going  to  believe  her,  and  be  sure  she's  on 
time.  Six  o'clock,  Saturday  night,  at  Needle 
Point."    This  was  the  date  set  for  the  picnic. 

The  man  gave  a  grunt  of  assent.  i '  I  bring  her, ' 1 
he  growled,  and  added  under  his  breath,  "fool." 

Bob  laughed  and  returned  to  Lois. 

"That's  the  one,  is  she  all  right?"  he  asked, 
pointing  to  the  girl  he  had  just  left. 

"She's  beautiful,"  Lois  replied.  "Oh,  Bob, 
how  I'd  love  to  paint  her.  I  bet  I  could,  too. 
Wouldn't  it  be  wonderful  if  we  could  transplant 


Polly  Entertains 


205 


the  whole  camp.  I  never  saw  anything  more 
fascinating. ' ' 

"The  whole  camp!  No,  thanks,  they're  too 
dirty  for  me.  Ugh !  I  was  afraid  to  take  a  deep 
breath."  Bob  looked  back  as  they  turned  the 
corner,  but  his  glance  held  none  of  the  regret  so 
evident  in  Lois What  was  picturesque  and  beau- 
tiful to  her,  was  only  dirt  to  him.  But  then,  Lois 
had  the  power  to  see  a  picture,  which  is  the  first 
sign  of  an  artist. 

The  rest  of  the  week  sped  past  on  wings  of  an- 
ticipation. Betty  arrived,  much  to  everybody's 
delight.  Apart  from  a  "hello  I"  whenever  they 
passed  the  Kent  place,  the  girls  did  not  take  any 
notice  of  Maud. 

Ever  since  the  invitations  for  the  picnic  had  been 
sent  the  answers  had  been  pouring  in,  and  by  Fri- 
day morning  there  were  thirty  acceptances. 

"I'm  getting  scared,"  Polly  said,  as  she  tore 
open  the  envelopes  Bob  had  just  brought  from  the 
post  office.  "What  are  we  going  to  do  with  them 
all?" 

"Don't  do  anything,"  Betty  said  lazily.  They 
were  on  the  terrace  and  she  was  curled  up  in  a  big 
chair.  "I  read  the  other  day,  that  the  perfect 
hostess  leaves  her  guests  alone,  so  that  each  one 
may  exercise  his  own  individuality  in  amusing 
himself." 

"  'Good    sentence,    and    well  pronounced, 


206         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

Betty/  "  Bob  laughed.  "By  the  way,  how  are  we 
going  over  there.  Who  is  going  in  the  boat,  and 
who  in  the  wagon  ?" 

6 i Oh,  let's  let  the  older  people  go  over  in  the 
wagon,  so  we  can  come  back  in  it,"  Lois  suggested. 
"There's  a  moon  and  it  ought  to  be  fun  riding 
home  and  singing." 

They  finally  settled  on  that  arrangement,  and 
Saturday  about  five  o  'clock,  a  merry  party  waited 
on  the  Pendleton  lawn. 

"Where's  Bob?"  Mrs.  Farwell  called,  as  the 
older  people  were  getting  into  the  wagon,  among 
much  bustle  and  confusion.  Miss  Hemingway  was 
there,  of  course,  and  she  directed  a  steady  stream 
of  conversation  at  Uncle  Roddy.  She  had  cap- 
tured him  early  in  the  afternoon,  and  when  they 
arrived  at  Needle  Point,  she  was  still  talking. 

"Bob's  going  to  meet  us  at  the  dock,"  Lois  an- 
swered her  mother's  question,  "he  went  down  in 
the  cart  to  get  Euth  and  Anita." 

Mrs.  Farwell  looked  surprised  and  a  little  an- 
noyed. 

"Then  every  one  is  accounted  for,"  she  said, 
"so  we  had  better  start." 

"Don't  fall  overboard,  Betty,"  Dr.  Farwell 
called,  as  they  started. 

The  younger  members  of  the  party  started  off 
down  the  hill.    They  were  of  every  age.  Polly 


Polly  Entertains 


207 


had  invited  the  entire  countryside.  Girls  and 
boys  she  had  played  with  years  before  in  the  days 
of  Aunt  Hannah,  some  of  them  she  had  not  seen 
since  she  was  a  little  girl. 

The  first  part  of  the  trip  she  was  busy  intro- 
ducing her  guests.  Lois  and  Betty  were  the  great- 
est of  helps. 

Most  of  the  girls  and  boys  were  much  older 
than  the  three,  and  it  was  hard  just  at  first  to  get 
acquainted,  but  they  decided  it  was  like  a  big 
school  party  with  the  boys  added  on,  and  before 
they  reached  the  Point,  Betty  had  everybody  in 
peals  of  laughter,  as  usual. 

Lois  and  Polly  had  taken  charge  of  Maud  from 
the  minute  she  and  her  mother  had  arrived.  They 
found  her  changed,  a  little  less  timid,  quite  willing 
to  make  friends  and  pathetically  eager  to  laugh. 

The  trip  up  the  bay  was  a  jolly  one.  The  boat 
reached  the  Point  before  the  wagon  and  there 
was  a  gasp  of  surprise  as  the  party  caught  the 
first  glimpse.  Dozens  of  gay  Japanese  lanterns 
swung  from  the  trees,  a  canvas  had  been  stretched 
for  dancing,  tables  and  chairs  were  scattered  about 
in  inviting  little  groups,  and  off  in  a  clump  of  trees 
a  tent  was  pitched  in  true  gypsy  fashion.  The 
slim,  little  maiden  of  Bob 's  choice  sat  in  the  door- 
way. She  was  dressed  in  a  very  gay  skirt  and 
bodice,  her  arms  and  neck  almost  hidden  by  in- 


208         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

numerable  bangles.  The  Needle  Point  seemed 
transformed  into  a  fairy  dell,  though  the  laughing 
crowd  that  took  possession  of  it  could  hardly  be 
called  fairies. 

The  wagon  arrived  soon  after  and  the  older 
people  made  themselves  comfortable  in  the  big 
birch  bark  chairs.  Polly  and  Lois,  with  Maud  be- 
tween them  went  over  to  help  with  the  supper. 
Betty  wandered  off  with  a  couple  of  boys  to  start 
up  the  music,  and  Bob  danced  a  perpetual  attend- 
ance on  Kuth  and  Anita. 

"I  think  the  gypsy  is  the  best  of  all,"  Polly  said. 
"Lo,  how  did  you  ever  think  of  it,  and  how  did  you 
ever  get  hold  of  one  f ' ' 

"Bob  did  it  for  me,"  Lois  explained,  "the  day 
we  went  out  in  the  pony  cart." 

i 1  Let 's  have  our  fortunes  told.  Gome  on,  Maud. 
After  supper  we  won't  have  a  chance."  Polly 
linked  her  arm  in  the  younger  girl's  and  started 
for  the  tent. 

"Oh,  I'd  rather  not,"  Maud  said,  more  from 
habit  than  from  any  other  reason. 

"Nonsense,  come  on,  I'm,  dying  to  know  what's 
going  to  happen  to  me,"  Lois  insisted. 

The  gypsy  smiled  as  the^  approached,  and  gave 
them  all  a  long  sing  song  chant.  A  mixture  of 
happiness  and  tragedy,  jumbled  together,  and 
evidently  learned  from  her  more  experienced  sis- 
ters. 


Polly  Entertains 


209 


Maud  listened  attentively  to  hers,  and  seemed 
to  take  it  quite  seriously. 

"I  wonder  what  she  meant  by  a  great  change  ?" 
she  asked,  as  they  left  the  tent. 

"Nothing,  probably,' '  Lois  laughed;  "she  just 
tells  that  to  everybody;  same  as  ' you  will  cross  a 
large  body  of  water/  or  'receive  a  message  before 
evening,'  and  the  rest." 

"Maybe  it  means  you  are  going  away,"  Polly 
suggested. 

"But  I'm  not,  I'm  going  to  stay  here  all  win- 
ter," Maud  insisted,  serious  as  ever. 

"Are  you  going  to  school  up  here?"  Lois  asked 
idly. 

"I  suppose  so." 

"Why  don't  you  go  to  a  boarding  school!" 
Polly  asked;  "you'd  love  it." 

"Oh,  I  couldn't."  It  was  the  eternal  answer. 
Poor  Maud,  she  had  been  afraid  so  long  that  she 
could  not  welcome  any  new  suggestion. 

"But  why  not?"  Polly  persisted. 

"I  don't  know,  but  I  just  couldn't."  Lois  saw 
the  corners  of  her  mouth  tremble  and  changed  the 
subject  abruptly. 

"Come  on  over  and  watch  them  dance,"  she 
said. 

Polly  took  the  hint,  but  made  a  mental  note  that 
she  would  get  Maud  used  to  the  idea  before  the 
summer  was  over. 


210        Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

Towards  the  end  of  the  evening,  Mrs.  Farwell 
had  pity  on  the  girls  and  called  Maud  over  to  her 
and  amused  her  for  the  rest  of  the  time. 

After  the  supper — and  it  was  a  wonderful  sup- 
per, perfect  in  every  detail,  from  the  jellied  meats 
to  the  ices.  Everybody  danced  and  played  games. 
Polly  and  Lois,  relieved  of  their  charge,  had  time 
to  talk  with  some  of  the  others,  and  Polly  at  once 
looked  about  expectantly  for  Bob.  She  found  him. 
He  was  sitting  between  Ruth  and  Anita.  They 
were  feeding  him  an  ice  and  Anita  was  talking 
baby  talk.  She  turned  away  disgusted,  surprised, 
but  most  of  all  hurt.  Just  then,  a  boy  she  had  al- 
most forgotten  claimed  her  for  a  dance  and  for  the 
rest  of  the  merry  evening  she  forgot  Bob. 

The  wagon  was  ordered  for  nine  o'clock,  but  it 
was  long  after  ten  before  the  party  broke  up. 
All  the  guests  insisted  that  it  had  been  the  greatest 
party  ever  given  in  the  little  village.  And  the 
hostesses  went  to  bed  after  the  jolly  drive  home, 
tired  and  sleepy,  but  with  the  comforting  knowl- 
edge that  it  would  be  the  topic  of  conversation  at 
sewing  parties  and  teas  for  many  days. 

"The  girls  were  awfully  good  to  Maud.  They 
took  her  with  them  every  minute,  and  I  do  think 
she  had  a  good  time,"  Mrs.  Farwell  said  to  the 
doctor  after  everybody  had  gone  to  bed. 

"Yes,  they  were,  and  I  don't  believe  they  en- 
joyed it  much,  either,' '  Dr.  Farwell  replied. 


Polly  Entertains 


211 


1 '  Maud  isn't  too  exciting.  Still  I  think  your  party 
was  a  great  success;  everybody,  young  and  old, 
had  a  good  time,  and  what  a  hit  the  gypsy  made." 
The  doctor  smiled  reminiscently,  he  was  very 
proud  to  think  that  the  clever  idea  had  originated 
in  Lois'  head. 

Mrs.  Farwell  looked  thoughtfully  out  of  the  win- 
dow. "No,  they  didn't  all  have  a  good  time," 
she  said,  and  then  added,  with  more  spirit  than 
she  was  wont  to  show:  "I  could  box  Bobbie's 
ears." 


CHAPTEE  XVI 


OFF  FOR  BOSTON" 

"Come  on  down,"  Polly  called  from  the  barn 
door,  up  to  Lois,  who  was  in  the  hay  loft  spending 
a  rainy  morning  reading  her  beloved  "Kim"  by 
Kudyard  Kipling. 

"Why  don't  yon  come  up?"  she  called  back, 
"it's  awfully  comfy." 

"All  right,  here  I  come,"  Polly  answered,  and 
in  a  minute  her  head  appeared  above  the  grain 
shaft.    "What  are  you  doing?" 

i 6  '  Beading,  learning  and  acquiring  merit,  oh,  lit- 
tle friend  of  all  the  world,'  "  Lois  answered  in  the 
words  of  the  book;  "what  news  do  you  bring?" 

Polly  made  a  deep  salaam,  falling  into  her  part  at 
once.  "News  of  the  utmost  importance,  Heaven 
born, ' '  she  replied ;"  in  less  than  a  week  we  go  upon 
the  road,  mayhap  we  will  find  the  river  of  our  search, 
for  it  is  decreed  that  we  go  as  far  as  Boston." 

"Boston!  honest?"  Lois  promptly  forgot  her 
role  of  dignified  lama,  in  her  curiosity.  "Who 
said  so?"  she  demanded. 

It  was  a  week  since  the  picnic.    Betty  had  gone 

home.    During  the  time,  Lois  and  Polly  had  taken 

up  the  "bringing  out  of  Maud"  in  earnest,  spend- 

212 


Off:  for  Boston 


213 


ing  a  good  part  of  each  day  with  her,  teaching  her 
the  ways  of  girlhood,  and  the  joys  of  companion- 
ship. It  had  been  slow  and  discouraging  work. 
To-day  it  was  pouring  and  they  were  taking  a  well 
earned  vacation. 

"Uncle  Eoddy,  yonr  father,  Bob,  Annt  Kate, 
everybody,"  Polly  answered,  settling  herself  in 
the  hay.    "They  think  we  need  a  change,  so — " 

"So  what!  Poll,  you'd  exasperate  a  saint. 
Tell  me!"    Lois  fairly  yelled  the  command. 

"So,  we're  going  to  Boston,"  Polly  teased. 

' 6  When  ?   Are  we  all  going !    Oh,  Poll,  tell  me. ' ' 

"The  end  of  this  week,  you,  Aunt  Kate  and  I  are 
going  in  Uncle  Roddy's  car." 

"With  the  chauffeur ?" 

"Naturally,  unless  you  will  drive  us." 

"Poll,  will  you  stop  being  irritating?  If  you 
don't  go  on  and  really  tell  me  all  about  it  I'll 
smother  you  in  the  hay. ' ' 

' 6 1  don 't  know  much.  They 've  just  decided  about 
it  up  at  the  house.    We're  to  start  on  Thursday." 

' 6  But  to-day 's  Monday ! ' ' 

"I  know  it,  isn't  it  sudden?" 

"What's  Bob  going  to  do?" 

"Visit,  I  think,"  Polly  said  it  indifferently. 
There  had  been  a  change  in  her  attitude  towards 
Bob  ever  since  the  party. 

""What  are  we  going  to  do  in  Boston?"  The 
queries  began  again. 


214         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

'  '  See  it, '  '  Polly  told  her.  ' '  Then  we  're  going  to 
Concord  and  Lexington  and  on  np  to  Salem  and 
Plymouth." 

"For  goodness'  sake!  How  long  are  we  to  be 
gone?" 

"Two  weeks." 

"Great  Scott !  Poll,  why,  when  we  come  back — " 
Lois  looked  aghast  as  she  realized  how  time  had 
been  flying  by  unnoticed. 

Polly  understood.  ' '  I  know  if, ' '  she  said.  '  i  The 
summer  is  almost  over.  Your  father  and  Uncle 
Roddy  have  sent  in  our  applications  to  school." 

"Let's  go  find  mother  and  the  rest  and  see  what 
they  are  talking  about. ' '  Lois  picked  up  her  book 
and  started  down  the  ladder.  "You  aren't  a  bit 
satisfactory." 

"I  like  that,  I  just  heard  the  first  of  the  plan, 
rushed  up  here  to  tell  you,  and  this  is  the  thanks 
I  get."  Polly  shook  her  head  mournfully  and 
followed  down  the  ladder. 

They  found  the  family  in  the  living  room,  still 
discussing  the  plans. 

"I  wish  I  could  go  with  you,"  Uncle  Roddy  said, 
pulling  Polly  down  on  his  knee.  "I  am  very  fond 
of  that  part  of  the  country,  it 's  so  quaint. ' ' 

"You'll  know  so  much  about  history  when  you 
get  back  to  school  they  won't  know  you,"  Dr.  Far- 
well  laughed.  ■  1  Lois,  some  of  your  ancestors  were 
minute  men  and  fought  all  over  that  ground." 


Off:  for  Boston 


215 


"I  wonder  if  any  of  mine  did?"  Polly  asked, 
looking  at  Uncle  Eoddy  for  an  answer. 

"Yes,  I  think  there  was  a  colonel  or  somebody — 
your  Aunt  Hannah  knew  all  about  him — who 
fought  in  the  battle  of  Lexington,"  he  added  with 
a  chuckle,  "and  got  licked." 

Mrs.  Farwell  looked  surprised.  "What  do  you 
mean,  Roddy'?"  she  asked. 

It  was  Polly  who  explained.  "Our  ancestors 
were  granted  land  by  Queen  Elizabeth,  and  so,  of 
course,  during  the  Revolution  they  remained  true 
to  the  crown  and  fought  on  the  British  side,"  she 
recited,  remembering  Aunt  Hannah's  words. 
"And  as  Uncle  Roddy  says,  we  got  licked,  but  not 
without  a  brave  struggle." 

"Perhaps  it  was  our  ancestor  who  killed  yours," 
Bob  spoke  for  the  first  time.  He  was  sitting  in  the 
bay  window,  reading. 

"Perhaps,  but  I'll  bet  he  got  killed  doing  it," 
Polly  flared  back.  In  her  secret  heart,  she  was 
rather  proud  that  her  ancestors  had  been  true  to 
the  old  country.  It  would  have  been  very  ungrate- 
ful of  them  if  they  hadn't. 

"I  don't  doubt  it,"  Bob  said  dryly,  and  retired 
again  into  the  bay  window. 

The  discussion  changed  to  the  more  practical 
arrangement  of  the  trip,  and  Polly  subsided. 

Tuesday  and  Wednesday  were  busy  days. 
There  was  room  only  for  one  small  trunk  on  the 


216         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

back  of  the  car,  and  the  clothes  that  wouldn't  go 
in  that  had  to  be  packed  in  suitcases.,  Lois  se- 
lected and  discarded  six  dresses  to  travel  in  before 
finally  deciding  to  follow  Polly's  example  and 
wear  a  sailor  suit. 

They  left  at  eight  o'clock  Thursday  morning. 
Bob  was  going  as  far  as  New  Haven  with  them. 
As  they  passed  the  Kent  place,  they  saw  Maud  at 
the  gate,  and  waved  and  shouted  good-by  until 
they  were  out  of  sight. 

"I  wonder  what  shell  do  to  amuse  herself  while 
we're  gone,"  Lois  said.  She  was  sitting  in  the 
back  of  the  car  with  her  mother  and  Bob.  Polly 
was  on  the  front  seat  with  Henry. 

"Miss  you,  I  hope,"  Mrs.  Farwell  said.  "Daddie 
seemed  to  think  that  would  do  her  worlds  of  good. ' ' 

They  lapsed  into  silence.  There  was  little  sign 
of  life  on  the  road  so  early,  and  the  car  seemed  to 
eat  up  the  peaceful  miles. 

"How  long  are  you  going  to  stay  with  Dick, 
Bobbie!"  Lois  asked,  as  they  neared  New  Haven. 
"I  wish  you  were  going  with  us." 

"So  do  I,"  Bob  answered,  but  with  little  con- 
viction in  his  voice.  "Cheer  up,  I  may  see  you 
before  you  think,"  he  added,  with  a  sidelong  glance 
at  his  mother.  He  left  them  later  at  the  New 
Haven  Green,  and  they  continued  on  their  way. 

The  road  went  through  beautiful  country,  past 
neat,  little  white  farm  houses  set  in  the  midst  of 


Off  for  Boston 


217 


tobacco  fields.  They  stopped  for  a  little  while  in 
Cheshire,  looking  at  the  quaint  houses,  and  much 
to  Polly's  joy  and  Lois'  horror,  wandered  through 
the  old  graveyard,  reading  the  inscriptions  on 
the  tombstones. 

"Look  at  this  one,"'  Polly  exclaimed.  She  was 
leaning  over  a  marble  slab  in  a  remote  corner  of 
the  yard.  "It  says,  ' Sacred  to  the  memory  of 
Bilious  Brooks.'  It  does.  Oh,  Aunt  Kate,  come 
here  and  look." 

Mrs.  Farwell  laughed  heartily.  "Do  you  sup- 
pose that  could  have  been  his  name  ? ' '  she  asked. 

Lois  was  disgusted.  "That's  the  end:  I'm  go- 
ing back  to  the  car.  Come  on.  I  declare,  people 
must  have  been  crazy  in  those  days,"  she  said, 
holding  open  the  gate. 

"Don't  speak  disrespectfully  of  your  ances- 
tors," Polly  teased.  "Jemima!  I'm  glad  mine 
were  buried  back  in  England  about  that  time." 

They  reached  Hartford  in  time  for  luncheon, 
looked  at  the  outside  of  the  public  buildings,  and 
decided  to  go  on  without  more  sightseeing.  It 
was  after  five  before  they  reached  Boston.  They 
had  passed  through  countless  little  towns,  all  green 
and  white,  and  they  were  tired  and  dusty.  The 
big  broad  Commons  looked  cool  and  stately  and 
it  was  with  regret  that  they  passed  it  to  wind  in 
and  out  of  tiny  little  streets  until  they  reached 
the  hotel  Uncle  Eoddy  had  selected  for  them. 


CHAPTER  XVII 


THE  SURPRISE  IN  THE  HOUSE  OF  THE  SEVEN  GABLES 

The  next  morning  they  were  out  bright  and 
early,  and,  armed  with  a  guide  book,  went  straight 
for  Paul  Revere 's  house. 

6 ' It's  adorable,' 9  Polly  exclaimed,  as  the  car 
threaded  its  way  up  the  narrow  street  and  stopped 
before  the  quaint  little  house,  with  its  leaded  win- 
dows and  its  big  massive  door.  The  custodian 
ushered  them  in  and  took  them  up  the  narrow 
stairs.  She  told  them  something  of  the  life  of 
Paul  Revere,  his  apparent  success  at  many  differ- 
ent trades,  his  distinction  as  a  man  of  letters. 
' i  And  he  had  sixteen  children, ' '  she  finished,  stop- 
ping in  one  room,  in  front  of  the  old  fireplace. 

" Sixteen  children !"  Lois  gasped.  "Did  they 
live  here  in  this  house  ?   "Where  did  they  sleep  % 1 9 

The  custodian  was  unable  to  say,  she  knew  he 
had  sixteen  children,  but  the  extent  of  her  knowl- 
edge did  not  extend  to  their  sleeping  accommoda- 
tions. 

"They  must  have  had  trundle  beds,"  Mrs.  Far- 
well  suggested.    She  was  amused  at  the  girls 9  con- 

218 


The  Surprise 


219 


cern.  "One  under  this  bed,"  she  pointed  to  the 
beautiful  four  poster;  "and  one  in  the  other 
room." 

"Even  at  that,  they  would  had  to  have  slept  in 
piles,"  Lois  protested  laughingly. 

"Or  taken  turns,"  Polly  suggested.  "Look  at 
this  old  woven  spread." 

"I  have  been,  it's  quite  wonderful,"  Mrs.  Far- 
well  looked  at  the  old  quilt,  almost  with  reverence. 
4 1  Think  of  the  eyes  that  made  it. ' ' 

"Aunt  Hannah  used  to  have  one  like  it;  she 
gave  it  to  some  exhibit,  I've  forgotten  where," 
Polly  said. 

They  wandered  about  the  two  rooms,  looking  at, 
and  admiring  the  queer  old  things.  Downstairs, 
the  custodian  showed  them  the  lantern  used  in 
the  famous  ride.  They  looked  up  the  high  chim- 
ney, because  she  told  them  to,  and  saw  a  patch  of 
blue  sky.  Just  before  they  left,  they  registered 
in  the  guest  book. 

"Where  will  we  say  we're  from?"  Lois  asked. 
"I'm  going  to  put  Honolulu  for  my  address. 
Here,  Poll." 

Polly  took  the  pen  offered  her  and  looked  dream- 
ily at  the  page,  she  was  trying  to  think  how  to 
spell  Afghanistan.  She  was  not  conscious  of 
really  reading  the  names  before  her.  Suddenly 
she  gave  a  start, 

"Look,  Lois!   Angela  Hollywood  and  Con- 


220         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


stance  Wentworth,  and  they  were  here  yester- 
day ! ' ?  she  exclaimed. 

Lois  and  her  mother  came  over  to  her  side  and 
read  the  names  for  themselves. 

"Where  do  you  suppose  they  are?"  Lois  de- 
manded. 

"Here  in  Boston,  of  course.  If  we  could  only 
find  them. ' ' 

"I'm  afraid  it's  hopeless,  unless  you  know  where 
they  are  stopping.  Perhaps  we  will  meet  them  by 
chance  during  our  sightseeing,"  Mrs.  Farwell  said, 
and  they  had  to  be  content  with  that.  But  though 
they  stayed  in  Boston  for  four  days  they  never 
saw  a  sign  of  them. 

On  Saturday  they  took  a  sightseeing  bus  to 
Lexington  and  Concord,  but  they  got  so  tired  of 
having  the  guard  stop  every  few  feet  to  say,  "On 
this  spot  three  British  were  captured  after  a  strug- 
gle with  the  Minute  Men, ' '  that  they  decided  to  get 
out  and  explore  for  themselves.  Polly  took  the 
lead. 

"Another  brass  tablet,  Lo,"  she  exclaimed; 
"look,  only  two  British  captured  this  time.  Well, 
it  took  a  whole  company  of  your  ancestors  to  do 
it, ? '  she  laughed. 

< <  Well,  I  like  that, ' 9  Lois  denied  hotly.  1  <  There 
were  only  two  captured  probably  because  your 
forefathers  were  learning  how  to  run." 

"Children,  children,  stop  fighting  the  Kevol-u- 


The  Surprise 


221 


tion  over  again,  and  look  at  this  lovely  big  tree," 
Mrs.  Farwell  commanded. 

They  looked  and  saw  a  tiny  red  house  almost 
entirely  hidden  by  an  immense  tree  in  the  front 
yard. 

1 '  I  wonder  who  lives  there  ! ' '  Lois  asked. 

"I  don't  know,  but  if  you're  very  quiet  and  look 
really  hard  you  may  see  Meg  and  Amy  walk  out 
of  the  front  door."  Mrs.  Farwell 's  voice  had  a 
mysterious  note. 

"Mother,  is  this  Louise  Alcott's  house?"  Lois 
asked  eagerly. 

"Yes,  and  it  was  under  that  tree  that  she  wrote 
'Little  Women.'  " 

They  stood  and  looked.  Their  attitude  bespoke 
a  sincerest  reverence  for  the  home  of  the  greatest 
friend  of  all  girls. 

A  little  later  they  sauntered  down  the  broad 
street  and  stopped  at  Hawthorne  House.  They 
found  it  full  of  treasures.  Both  girls  had  read 
his  "Twice  Told  Tales"  at  school,  and  although 
they  were  never  more  than  mildly  interested  in 
them,  they  found  it  exciting  to  be  in  the  room  and 
to  sit  in  the  very  chair  in  which  they  were  written. 
They  lingered  so  long  over  the  many  interesting 
relics  that  they  found  they  had  not  time  to  get  back 
to  Boston  for  dinner. 

"And  I'm  starved,  too,"  Lois  wailed,  when  her 
mother  figured  out  that  they  could  not  reach  the 


222 


Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


hotel  until  eight  o'clock.  "We  simply  must  eat 
now,  Mother,  darling,  unless  you  want  to  take  a 
corpse  back  to  town." 

"Gracious!  I'm  sure  I  don't  want  to  do  that 
What  about  you,  Polly?"  Mrs.  Farwell  asked. 

"I'm  famished,  don't  you  suppose  we  could  find 
a  place  to  eat  here  V9  Polly  looked  so  woeful  that 
Mrs.  Farwell  laughed. 

"It  sounds  as  if  we'd  have  to,"  she  said. 

They  walked  on  down  the  street  to  one  of  Wash* 
ington's  numerous  headquarters,  which  announced 
in  bold  letters  that  it  was  now  a  tea  room. 

"Come  along,  let's  try  this."  Mrs.  Farwell 
turned  up  the  walk,  but  Lois  had  caught  sight  of 
a  sign  across  the  road  that  appeared  more  in- 
viting. 

"No,  come  on  over  here,  this  is  an  inn,  and 
my  appetite  is  more  inn  like  than  tea  room  like 
just  now,"  she  said.  They  crossed  over  to  it 
and  made  their  way  through  a  room  with  a  tiny 
mahogany  bar  at  one  end,  and  reached  the  dining- 
room. 

While  dinner  was  being  cooked — they  were  the 
only  guests — Polly  wandered  about,  looking  at  the 
old  prints  on  the  wall.  A  framed  notice  caught 
her  attention.  It  stated  that  this  inn  had  once 
been  the  headquarters  of  the  British  during  the 
war.  She  drew  Lois  and  Mrs.  Farwell 's  attention 
to  it. 


The  Surprise 


223 


"My,  but  I'm  glad  you  saw  this  sign,  Lo,"  she 
said,  teasingly.  "I  feel  now  as  if  I  were  among 
friends  at  last." 

But  Lois '  answer  was  cut  short  by  the  welcome 
arrival  of  dinner. 

The  next  morning  they  started  for  Salem.  It 
was  a  hot  and  dusty  trip  and  they  hoped  to  cover 
it  without  mishap.  They  had  hardly  passed  the 
outskirts  of  Boston,  however,  when  they  heard  an 
ominous  bang-sizz. 

"Not  a  tire,  Polly,' '  Mrs.  Farwell  called  implor- 
ingly from  the  back  seat. 

"Yes,  Aunt  Kate,  it's  a  tire,  and  I  guess  it's  the 
whole  thing,  shoe  and  all,"  Polly  answered,  as  the 
car  came  to  a  stop. 

Everybody  got  out,  Mrs.  Farwell  sat  down  de- 
jectedly on  the  stone  wall,  and  the  girls  helped 
Henry  to  change  the  tire.  They  were  ready  to 
start  in  less  than  half  an  hour,  and  reached  Salem 
before  noon  without  further  mishap.  After  a 
hasty  luncheon  at  a  cozy  tea  room,  they  went  to 
the  house  of  the  witches. 

"Oh,  there's  a  curiosity  shop  upstairs,  let's 
go  up,"  Mrs.  Farwell  said,  stopping  at  the  foot 
of  the  rickety  staircase  that  led  upstairs  from  the 
dingy  little  room  on  the  first  floor. 

Polly  was  deep  in  the  guide  book,  trying  to  pic- 
ture the  tragedies  that  had  gone  on  in  this  very 
house,  but  Lois  answered: 


224        Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

"Mother,  darling,  well  go  up  if  you  promise 
not  to  stay  up  there  all  the  afternoon. ' ' 

It  was  not  Mrs.  Farwell,  however,  who  had  to 
be  torn  away  an  hour  later.  The  girls  at  the  first 
sight  of  the  fascinating  interior  of  the  shop  and 
its  charming  custodian  were  only  too  willing  to 
stay. 

"Look  at  this  china,  it's  strawberry  luster,  a 
whole  set  of  it,  just  imagine !"  Polly,  who  really 
had  a  deep  reverence  for  old  things,  gazed  admir- 
ingly. 

"I'll  take  this  old  grandfather's  clock,  I  love  its 
funny  old  moon  face,"  Lois  said.  "Where  do  you 
get  hold  of  all  these  nice  things  ? ' '  she  asked.  Miss 
Wright,  who  was  the  owner  of  the  shop,  smiled 
reminiscently. 

"At  all  sorts  of  places.  I  have  a  little  car  and 
I  drive  around  the  country,"  she  told  them. 
"Sometimes  I  have  the  funniest  experiences.  The 
other  day  I  went  into  a  farm  house,  oh,  miles  away 
in  the  country.  I  asked  the  old  woman,  who  was 
there  alone,  if  I  could  have  some  water  for  my 
car.  I  never  let  them  think  I  am  after  old  fur- 
niture. She  told  me  I  could  if  I  would  go  out  in 
the  kitchen  and  get  it.  I  went,  and  the  first  thing 
I  saw  was  a  lyre  table  like  this. ' '  She  pointed  to 
a  beautiful  old  table  in  one  corner  of  the  room, 
"and,"  she  paused  to  make  the  best  of  her  point, 
"it  was  painted  bright  red!" 


The  Surprise 


225 


"Oh,  no,"  Mrs.  Farwell  looked  half  shocked  and 
half  amused. 

"Yes,  really,  I  admired  it  while  I  was  pumping 
the  water,  and  before  I  left  I  had  struck  a  bargain. 
She  said  I  might  have  that  ' silly  thing'  if  I  would 
send  her  a  sensible  one.  The  minute  I  got  back 
to  town  I  bought  her  the  plainest,  ugliest  deal 
kitchen  table  I  could  find,  and  my  jewel,  disguised 
in  red  paint,  is  now  being  done  over." 

"Tell  us  some  more,"  Lois  was  enraptured. 
She  was  already  planning  a  curiosity  shop  of  her 
own. 

But  further  adventures  were  cut  short  by  a 
peremptory  knock. 

Miss  Wright  hastened  to  open  the  door. 

"I  don't  want  anything  to-day,"  she  said,  the 
instant  she  saw  the  little  man,  in  a  brown  derby, 
that  stood  on  the  threshold  carrying  a  big  flat 
package,  tied  with  innumerable  strings. 

"But  you  don't  know  what  I  have ;  you  must  at 
least  look,"  he  insisted,  edging  in  the  door. 

"I  tell  you  I  don't  want  anything." 

"But  just  look,  listen  to  me,"  the  little  man  was 
becoming  voluble.  ' '  I  have  here  a  very  rare  print, 
it  is  over  a  hundred  years  old,  a  work  of  art. ' '  He 
began  to  untie  the  strings.  6 1  The  only  one  in  ex- 
istence, and  think  of  it,  over  a  hundred  years  old." 

By  this  time  the  paper  was  off,  and  he  exhibited 
the  picture. 


226         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

"Here  it  is,  a  family  group  of  Abraham  Lin- 
coln.' ' 

For  a  second,  there  was  a  dead  silence,  then,  the 
four  onlookers  burst  into  peals  of  laughter.  Mrs. 
Farwell  was  the  first  to  recover.  "And  you  say 
it's  a  hundred  years  old  I  How  interesting,  I 
might  even  say,  how  very  remarkable. ' ' 

The  man  saw  something  was  wrong,  he  could 
have  argued  against  rebuffs,  but  laughter  com- 
pletely floored  him.  He  departed  in  a  state  of 
sulks,  and  left  a  convulsed  party  behind  him  in  the 
little  shop. 

"Oh,  dear,  oh,  dear.  We  must  be  going,"  Mrs. 
Farwell  said  at  last,  "if  we  are  ever  to  see  the 
House  of  the  Seven  Gables."  They  left  with 
many  regrets  on  both  sides. 

"Wasn't  she  sweet!"  Polly  exclaimed,  when 
they  were  in  the  car,  and  headed  for  the  other  part 
of  town. 

"Yes,  she  was  adorable.  What  fun  she  must 
have  in  that  shop."  Lois  looked  back  enviously 
at  the  little  house,  crazy  with  age. 

But  regrets  fled  at  the  sight  of  the  House  of  the 
Seven  Gables.  They  reveled  in  its  quaint  exterior. 
They  entered  by  the  side  door,  eager  with  antici- 
pation, and  found  themselves  in  Hepzibar's  shop. 
They  stood  still  for  a  minute,  then,  a  hearty  laugh 
from  the  next  room  made  Polly  and  Lois  turn 
suddenly. 


The  Surprise  227 

"That's  Ange,"  they  both  said  at  once,  and 
dashed  off  in  search. 

Before  the  fire  in  the  kitchen,  investigating  the 
big  fireplace,  they  found  her  with  Connie.  They 
rushed  into  each  other's  arms  at  sight,  and  such 
a  babble  of  gay  and  excited  voices,  the  old  house 
had  probably  never  heard.  Connie 's  aunt  was  with 
them,  and  the  girls  finally  recovered  from  the  sur- 
prise enough  to  make  the  necessary  introductions. 

"Was  that  your  car  out  in  front ?"  Lois  de- 
manded. 

"Yes,  are  you  motoring  too?"  .Connie  asked. 
"Where  are  you  going  next?" 

"Plymouth,"  Polly  answered. 

"So  are  we.  Oh,  we  must  go  together,  what  a 
lark!" 

"We  saw  your  names  in  the  book  at  Paul  Ke- 
vere's  house,"  Lois  said.  "Poll  found  them,  and 
we  looked  all  over  Boston  for  you." 

"Yes,  we  paid  our  respects  to  Paul,"  Angela 
said  airily.  "Didn't  you  love  the  old  South 
Church?" 

"Yes.  What  have  you  been  doing  this  sum- 
mer? We  visited  Louise,  and — "  They  were  off 
on  a  stream  of  news.  Finally  a  guide  took  them 
over  the  house,  but  it  is  doubtful  if  they  heard 
much  that  she  said.  The  life  of  Seddon  Hall,  so 
much  more  important  in  their  eyes,  claimed  their 
attention.    Connie's  aunt,  Miss  Wentworth,  was 


228         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

only  too  delighted  to  continue  the  trip  in  com- 
pany, so  the  girls  decided  to  ride  in  Polly's  car, 
and  Mrs.  Far  well  and  Miss  Wentworth  went  in  the 
other.  They  stayed  in  Salem  until  the  next  day, 
when  they  left  for  Plymouth.  It  was  the  j oiliest, 
and  in  one  car,  at  least,  the  noisiest  of  parties. 

They  separated  in  Boston  four  days  later. 

"Drat  it,"  Polly  said,  as  she  and  Lois  stood  de- 
jectedly in  the  hotel  lobby.  "The  trouble  with 
meeting  people,  is  leaving  them." 

"Whatever  that  may  mean,"  Lois  answered. 
"I  think  I  understand  though.  Wasn't  it  queer, 
our  finding  them,  just  happening  to  go  to  the 
Seven  Gables  when  they  did!" 

"We  have  the  one  hundred  year  old  man  to 
thank  for  that  at  the  curiosity  shop.  "  Polly 
laughed  at  the  memory. 

"I  know,  everything  that  happened  that  day 
was  leading  up  to  that  meeting,"  Lois  said  sol- 
emnly; "even  the  tire's  blowing  out!" 

Mrs.  Farwell  joined  them  at  this  point.  She 
had  been  telephoning  to  Dr.  Farwell. 

"We  leave  for  home  early  to-morrow,"  she  said, 
smiling  mysteriously;  "so  this  afternoon  we  must 
go  over  to  Harvard,  and  see  where  Bob  is  to  be 
next  winter." 

"Can  we  get  a  guide  to  take  us  around?"  Polly 
asked.    ' '  We  won 't  know  what  we  're  looking  at. ' ' 

"Yes,  there  are  some  students  who  will  show  us 


The  Surprise 


229 


through,  they  tell  me,"  Mrs.  Farwell  answered 
her. 

"Handsome  ones?"  Lois  inquired.  "I  won't 
go  unless  they  are  handsome." 

"Lois,  don't  be  silly,"  her  mother  chided 
quietly. 

They  drove  over  the  bridge  to  Cambridge,  and 
straight  up  to  the  entrance  of  the  college  yard. 
Almost  before  the  car  had  stopped,  a  man  jumped 
on  the  running  board,  and  they  heard  in  the  cool- 
est possible  voice : 

"You  don't  mind  being  twenty  minutes  late,  do 
you?" 

"Bob!"  both  girls  exclaimed,  "where  did  you 
come  from?" 

"Oh,  I  just  dropped  round.  I  heard  you  were 
coming,  and  I  thought  you  might  want  to  hire  a 
guide." 

"You  knew  he'd  be  here,  Aunt  Kate,"  Polly  ac- 
cused.   "That's  who  you  were  telephoning  to." 

Mrs.  Farwell  admitted  that  it  was,  and  told 
them  how  this  particular  surprise  had  been 
planned  before  they  left  home.  They  all  got  out 
of  the  car,  and  Bob,  who  had  been  in  Cambridge 
for  a  week,  visiting  one  of  his  friends,  who  was 
already  in  college,  showed  them  around  with  all 
the  air  of  proprietorship. 

They  saw  his  rooms  in  one  of  the  freshman 
dormitories  first.    Mrs.  Farwell  insisted  upon 


230         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

that.  Then  they  went  the  rounds  of  all  the  build- 
ings, even  drove  out  to  the  stadium.  They  visited 
the  library  and  the  chapel  last,  and  as  they  walked 
from  one  to  the  other  under  the  big  shady  trees, 
Lois  exclaimed: 

"Oh,  I  love  this  campus,  it's  so  peaceful.' ' 

Bob's  brows  contracted  into  a  frown,  and  he 
stood  still  in  the  path. 

1 '  Lois, ' '  he  said,  very  decidedly,  ' '  that  is  some- 
thing you  must  never  say.  This  is  not  the  campus, 
it's  the  yard." 

And  Lois,  who  was  innocent  of  any  intention  to 
ofTend,  felt  nevertheless,  decidedly  small,  as  no 
doubt  countless  sisters  have  felt  before  her. 

"I'll  remember,  Bobbie,"  she  promised  humbly. 

"The  yard,"  Polly  thought  a  minute,  "I  like 
that,  it's  different." 

On  the  way  home,  and  Bob  returned  with  them, 
Mrs.  Farwell  asked:  "Well,  Lois,  dear,  were  you 
satisfied  with  your  guide?" 

"Oh,  he  was  all  right,"  Lois  answered,  turning 
around  in  her  place  in  the  front  seat. 

Polly  was  sorting  some  postals.  She  looked  up 
suddenly. 

"He  certainly  fitted  the  only  requirement  you 
seemed  to  be  looking  for,"  she  said,  blushing  a 
little. 

Lois  and  her  mother  both  laughed,  but  Bob 
never  knew  why. 


CHAPTER  XVIII 


THOUGHTS  OF  SCHOOL 

'•'Poll,  look  what's  come,"  Lois  dashed  out  of 
the  post  office  flourishing  two  envelopes. 

Polly  was  in  the  cart.  She  had  just  dropped 
Bob  at  Anita's  for  a  game  of  tennis. 

"What  are  they?"  she  demanded,  catching  some 
of  Lois'  excitement. 

"Announcements  from  school,  one  for  you  and 
one  for  me.  This  shows  we  're  giddy  '  Sophs. '  An- 
nouncements are  always  sent  to  your  guardian 
until  after  your  freshman  year,  then  they  come 
to  you." 

"I  know,  Louise  told  me  that  last  year.  She 
said  it  was  a  trick  of  Mrs.  Baird's  to  make  you  feel 
grown  up."  Polly  hurriedly  tore  open  the  en- 
velope. 

"Sept.  twenty-seventh,  and  to-day's  the  first, 
Polly,  just  think  of  it."  Lois  was  evidently  de- 
lighted at  the  prospect  of  returning  to  school. 
"Aren't  you  excited?"  she  demanded. 

"Of  course  I  am,  I  was  just  thinking,"  Polly 
gave  a  long,  happy  sigh;  "I'll  be  an  old  girl  this 

231 


232         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

year,"  she  said  dreamily.  She  was  trying  to  re- 
alize all  that  the  word  implied. 

She  would  know  everybody,  for  one  thing,  and 
every  place.  The  new  girls  would  ask  her  ques- 
tions, and  she  would  be  able  to  answer  them. 
What  fun  it  would  be. 

Lois  interrupted  her  dream,  and  there  was  a 
note  of  regret  in  her  voice. 

"I'm  crazy  to  get  back,"  she  said,  doubtfully, 
6  1  but  I  hate  to  think  the  summer  is  over ;  it 's  been 
so  short.  Why  we  haven't  done  half  the  things 
we  planned  to  do. ' 9 

"What,  for  instance?"  Polly  asked. 

"Oh,  I  don't  know,  we  never  went  back  to  Mrs. 
Tomkins'  to  see  her  dairy." 

"Let's  do  it  to-day." 

"I  thought  we  were  going  over  to  see  Maud?" 

"Well,  let's  do  both,  or  better  still,  let's  take 
Maud  with  us,  then  we  can  bring  her  home  to 
luncheon,  and  talk  Seddon  Hall  some  more." 

"Poll,  you'll  never  make  her  say  yes.  What's 
the  use  of  trying?"  Lois  said  decidedly. 

"Wait  and  see." 

This  conversation  was  in  regard  to  Polly's  latest 
decision.  Ever  since  the  night  of  the  picnic,  the 
idea  that  boarding  school,  and  of  course,  by  that 
she  meant  Seddon  Hall,  was  the  only  place  for 
Maud  had  been  taking  shape  in  her  mind.  She 
was  not  in  the  least  discouraged  by  Maud's  utter 


Thoughts  of  School  233 


lack  of  interest  in  it.  She  went  about  gaining  Mrs. 
Farwell's  cooperation,  and  then  Mrs.  Banks'. 
Both  women  agreed  that  nothing  could  be  better 
for  Maud,  but  how  to  make  her  take  such  a  decided 
step,  without  using  force,  was  beyond  them. 
Polly,  however,  was  undaunted.  She  painted  the 
joys  of  boarding  school  life  whenever  she  saw 
her,  and  in  the  gentlest  way  made  Maud  see  her- 
self in  all  the  pictures.  There  was  one  hopeful 
sign.  While  the  girls  had  been  away,  Maud  had 
missed  them,  so  much  in  fact,  that  she  had  dis- 
covered for  herself  a  small  boy,  the  son  of  a  near- 
by farmer,  and  had  played  with  him  whenever 
she  got  the  chance.  On  their  way  home  they 
stopped  at  the  Kent  Place,  tied  Banker  and  went 
up  the  front  path. 

"Oh,  Maud,"  Lois  called,  "where  are  you?" 

Maud  appeared  from  around  the  corner. 

"Hello,"  she  said,  "have  you  come  over  to  stay 
for  awhile?" 

"No,"  Polly  laughed,  "just  for  a  second,"  and 
as  Maud's  face  fell,  she  added  hastily:  "We've 
come  to  take  you  for  a  drive." 

"We're  going  to  go  through  Mrs.  Tomkins' 
dairy,  and  we  thought  you  might  like  to  go  along, ' ' 
Lois  explained. 

Both  girls  waited  for  the  customary  "Oh,  I 
couldn't,"  and  were  greatly  surprised  when  Maud 
said  quietly;  "Oh,  I'd  like  to,"  instead. 


234        Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

i 6 Well,  tell  your  mother,' '  Polly  said,  and  as 
Maud  went  into  the  house,  she  added:  * 4 Tell  her 
you  are  going  to  stay  to  luncheon  with  us." 

"When  they  were  in  the  cart  and  on  their  way 
down  to  the  Tomkins',  Polly  thought  it  was  time 
to  begin  her  attack  once  more.  She  picked  up  one 
of  the  School  announcements. 

"Lo  and  I  haven't  much  more  time  up  here," 
she  said,  tossing  it  into  Maud's  lap. 

Maud  read  it.  "Do  you  really  want  to  go 
back  ? ' '  she  asked  wonderingly. 

"Of  course  we  do,  we're  crazy  to,"  Lois  replied 
impatiently. 

"Why?" 

"Why,  because  we  want  to  see  all  the  girls,  and 
start  playing  basket  ball  again,"  Polly  explained. 
"You've  no  idea  what  fun  it  is;  everybody  has  so 
much  to  say;  why  the  place  is  like  a  tower  of 
Babel." 

"Do  they  all  want  to  go  back?"  Maud  asked, 
still  in  the  same  level  voice. 

"Yes,  every  girl  that's  ever  been  to  Seddon  Hall 
wants  to  get  back,"  Polly  said,  and  then,  as  if  dis- 
missing the  subject,  "Here's  Mrs.  Tomkins'." 

They  jumped  out  of  the  cart  and  rapped  im- 
portantly on  Mrs.  Tomkins'  brass  knocker. 

The  dairy  did  not  prove  exciting.  Maud,  in 
spite  of  her  brave  beginning,  retired  into  a  shell 


Thoughts  of  School 


235 


and  refused  to  speak.  Polly  was  busy  thinking 
out  a  further  plan  of  campaign,  so  the  duty  of 
talking  to  Mrs.  Tomkins  rested  entirely  with  Lois. 
She  did  her  best,  admiring  the  neat  rows  of  shin- 
ing milk  tins,  the  spotted  black  and  white  Sol- 
stein  cows,  and  went  into  ecstasies  over  a  pair 
of  little  calves. 

Finally  they  bade  Mrs.  Tomkins  good-by  and 
promised  to  come  again. 

" Which  we  won't,"  laughed  Lois,  settling  back 
in  the  cart.  i '  I  thought  a  dairy  would  be  exciting, 
but  it 's  no  more  thrilling  than  a  clock. ' f 

"Lo  is  disappointed  because  there  were  no 
dairy  maids  on  three  legged  stools,' '  laughed 
Polly.  "She  wanted  something  that  would  make 
a  pretty  picture." 

"I  certainly  did,"  Lois  agreed,  solemnly.  "I 
don't  think  anything  is  worth  while  unless  it's 
beautiful. ' ' 

"How  about  it's  being  more  useful?"  asked  the 
practical  Polly. 

Lois  pouted,  lifted  her  eyebrows  and  shrugged 
her  shoulders. 

"I  hate  useful  things,"  she  said  airily.  "Milk- 
ing cows  by  machinery  may  be  more  sensible,  but 
it's  not  as  sweet  as  the  old  fashioned  way,  so  it 
shouldn't  be  allowed,"  she  finished,  with  the  pecul- 
iar logic  of  Lois. 


236         Polly's  Slimmer  Vacation 

Polly  looked  her  disgust.  "Upon  my  word,  Lo, 
you're  beginning  to  be  temperamental. ' ' 

"What  does  that  mean?"  Maud  inquired 
shyly. 

' '  Crazy, ' '  was  Polly 's  prompt  reply.  ' '  Temper- 
ament is  a  polite  way  of  saying  temper.  People 
who  can  do  things  like  painting  and  singing  and 
playing,  think  they  have  a  right  to  silly  ideas,  like 
milk  maids,"  this  with  a  grin  at  Lois. 

"Can  Lois  play?"  Maud  interrupted  to  ask. 

"No,  but  the  drawing  teacher  at  school  says 
she  can  paint ;  she  can  too, ' '  Polly  said  seriously. 
She  had  a  grave  respect  for  Lois'  drawings,  but 
she  loved  to  tease  her  about  them.  6 '  But  that  's  no 
reason  why  she  should  have  silly  ideas. ' ' 

As  if  this  were  final,  and  allowed  of  no  further 
argument,  Polly  tightened  the  reins  on  Banker's 
back  and  he  broke  into  a  trot. 

Maud's  eyes  were  rivited  on  the  pony's  ears. 
Polly  noticed  her  interest. 

"Want  to  drive?"  she  said,  offering  the  reins. 

"Oh,  may  I?"  Maud  was  eager  in  accepting. 
"I  haven't  driven  for  ages,  and  oh,  how  I  love 
it." 

"Have  you  ever  driven?"  Lois  inquired. 

"Oh,  yes,  indeed.  In  India  I  drove  and  rode  all 
the  time  there;  one  does,  you  know." 

The  girls  were  beginning  to  recognize  this  last 
phrase  as  characteristic  of  Maud* 


Thoughts  of  School 


237 


"We  had  some  old  Polo  ponies;  they  were 
awfully  tricky." 

"Can  you  ride  horseback  too?"  Polly  de- 
manded. "Why  didn't  you  say  so?  I'd  have  let 
you  ride  Banker.  I  used  to,  but  I'm  getting  too 
heavy  for  him."  This  was  not  true;  Polly  had 
longed  to  ride  all  Summer,  but  there  was  no  horse 
for  Lois,  so  it  had  always  been  the  cart. 

They  reached  the  house  in  time  for  luncheon 
and  found  that  Mrs.  Farwell  had  gone  over  to 
Mrs.  Banks ',  and  had  left  word  for  them  to  have 
luncheon  on  the  terrace. 

"Where's  Bob,  do  you  suppose?"  Lois  asked. 

"Oh,  he's  staying  with  Anita.  They  asked  him 
to  this  morning,"  Polly  said.  "Some  people  are 
coming  over  for  tennis  this  afternoon;  he  won't 
be  home  until  dinner  time." 

Lois  scowled.  "He  makes  me  sick,  he's  never 
here  any  more,  and  when  he  is,  he  just  moons 
around  until  I  wish  he'd  get  out.  What  he  can 
see  in  Anita  I  can't  imagine."  Lois  was  frank, 
with  the  bluntness  peculiar  to  sisters. 

"Anita  is  very  nice,  Lois,"  Polly  said  severely, 
"and  Bob  likes  tennis.  What  shall  we  do  this 
afternoon?"  she  asked,  to  change  the  subject. 
"We've  so  little  time  left  that  we  shouldn't  waste 
it." 

6  6  How  about  a  walk  to  the  pinnacle  ? ' '  Lois  sug- 
gested.   "We've  always  intended  to  go  up  there, 


238         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

and  some  one  said  the  gypsies  were  camping  on 
the  way." 

"I  hate  gypsies;  they  scare  me  to  death,"  Polly 
said  emphatically.  "One  in  a  tent  all  rigged  up 
is  all  right,  but  a  camp  full  of  them !    No,  thanks. ' ' 

"Oh,  very  well;  only  they  are  so  picturesque,  I 
love  to  look  at  them."  Lois  sighed  dejectedly — 
watching  the  effect  of  her  speech  out  of  the  corner 
of  her  eye. 

"There  you  go  again;  more  artisticness ;  you 
ought  to  be  shaken  good  and  hard,"  Polly  de- 
clared.   "What  do  you  want  to  do,  Maud!" 

"Oh,  I  don't  know;  anything  you  say." 

"No,  I'm  tired  of  deciding;  you  say  some- 
thing," Polly  insisted,  determined  to  force  a  sug- 
gestion if  it  were  only  picking  flowers. 

Maud  caught  her  breath  sharply;  her  eyes 
were  on  a  distant  meadow,  where  two  young  colts 
were  grazing. 

"Could  we  go  and  see  the  colts?"  she  said  with 
a  rush.    "I  mean  catch  and  ride  them." 

Polly  and  Lois  looked  at  her  in  astonishment. 
"We  couldn't,"  Lois  said. 

But  Polly  exclaimed:  "We  could.  Come  on, 
it's  a  great  idea.  We'll  take  turns  trying  to  ride 
them. ' ' 

They  were  off  at  once,  over  the  lawn,  past  the 
barn,  where  they  called  to  Tim  to  tell  him  where 
they  were  going.    The  old  coachman  held  up  his 


Thoughts  of  School 


239 


hands  in  horror,  but  there  was  a  look  of  amuse- 
ment, tinged  with  pride  in  the  corners  of  his  eyes. 
When  they  reached  the  pasture,  set  aside  for 
the  colts,  Polly  and  Maud  took  down  the  bars 
and  started  for  them.  They  were  frisking  in  the 
farthest  corner  of  the  field.  Lois  followed  for  a 
few  yards,  but  decided  she  would  prefer  to  stay 
on  the  fence  and  watch  the  fun,  than  to  mix  in 
it.  Maud,  at  the  first  sight  of  the  horses,  seemed 
to  completely  cast  her  spell  of  bashfulness.  She 
approached  the  long  legged  clumsy  little  things 
with  an  assurance  that  surprised  even  the  daunt- 
less Polly. 

"Which  one  do  you  want?"  she  asked. 

"Oh,  I  don't  care;  I  guess  it  will  be  the  ones 
we  can  get. ' '  Polly  laughed,  making  a  futile  dive 
at  one  of  them. 

"I'll  try  for  the  black  one  then,"  Maud  said, 
but  Polly  was  already  off  after  the  bay. 

The  chase  lasted  for  quite  awhile.  Both  girls 
were  quick  as  lightning  and  it  seemed  as  if  they 
had  them  many  times,  but  the  colts  ducked  and 
reared  and  galloped  away.  They  seemed  to  be 
thoroughly  enjoying  the  sport. 

At  last,  Polly  got  both  arms  around  her  pony's 
neck  and  jumped  on  his  back — then  for  a  min- 
ute the  fun  was  fast  and  furious.  Maud  screamed 
directions,  dancing  from  one  foot  to  the  other  in 
her  excitement.    Polly's  triumph  was  not  long 


240         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

lived,  however;  an  unexpected  side  jump  and  she 
was  rolling  on  the  ground.  Maud  was  the  next 
to  succeed,  and  she  had  better  luck.  Once  seated 
on  the  colt's  back,  she  stuck,  in  spite  of  his  kick- 
ing and  rearing.  Lois  in  the  excitement  of  watch- 
ing fell  off  the  fence.  After  she  picked  herself 
up  she  ran  full  tilt  back  to  the  house  to  return  in 
a  f  ew  minutes  with  paper  and  pencil.  She  climbed 
back  on  the  fence  again,  wound  her  feet  about 
the  lower  rung  for  safety  and  started  to  sketch 
hurriedly. 

By  that  time,  Polly  and  Maud  were  falling  off 
and  jumping  on  their  fiery  charges  in  rapid  succes- 
sion, shouting  with  the  very  joy  of  it.  They  kept 
it  up  until  the  sun  began  to  sink  behind  the  hill,  al- 
ready cloaked  in  its  Autumn  robe  of  gold  and  red. 

"Jemima,  but  that  was  great,"  Polly  ex- 
claimed as  she  tossed  her  hair  back  from  her  face. 
'Ton  certainly  are  a  wonder,  Maud!" 

Maud  smiled  happily;  her  eyes  were  bright  with 
excitement  and  her  cheeks  were  flushed.  She 
fairly  stood  on  her  toes. 

" Let's  do  it  again  to-morrow,"  she  said. 

"You  bet,  we'll  have  those  colts  perfect  saddle 
horses  before  we  get  through,"  Polly  promised. 

"What  have  you  been  doing,  Lo?"  she  inquired, 
looking  at  the  paper  in  Lois'  hand. 

Lois  chuckled.  "I  have  been  having  the  time  of 
my  life,"  she  said.    "I  couldn't  see  myself  being 


Thoughts  of  School 


241 


kicked  in  the  head  by  one  of  those  wild  animals, 
but  I  certainly  did  have  fun  watching  yon." 

"What  are  those ?"  Polly  insisted,  looking  at 
the  papers. 

Lois  was  embarrassed.  "Oh,  these?  Well, 
you  see,  I  was  afraid  I  couldn't  tell  Mother  and 
Bob  how  funny  you  looked,  so  I  tried  sketching 
you  in  action." 

Polly  grabbed  the  sheets  from  her  hand,  and 
looked  at  the  pictures.  There  were  six  of  them,  of 
Maud  and  Polly  in  every  possible  position,  in  mid 
air,  on  the  colts'  backs  and  rolling  on  the  ground. 

"Lo,  they're  great.    Look,  Maud,  this  is  you." 

"Aren't  they  wonderful!  How  clever  of  you," 
Maud  exclaimed,  looking  over  Polly's  shoulder. 

Mrs.  Farwell  and  Bob  saw  them  at  the  dinner 
table  and  were  even  more  enthusiastic  over  them. 

"They  really  are  splendid,  darling,"  Mrs.  Far- 
well  said.  "I  wish  you'd  do  some  more.  I'm  go- 
ing to  send  them  to  Father  to-night,"  she  added, 
as  she  rose  to  leave  the  table. 

"They're  pretty  good,  Sis,"  Bob  admitted, 
"but  do  you  mean  to  tell  me  that  Maud  really 
caught  one  of  those  frisky  colts,  and  rode  it?"  he 
added,  lest  too  much  attention  should  turn  his  sis- 
ter's pretty  head.  He  walked  out  on  the  terrace 
between  the  two  girls. 

"Yes,  she's  a  wonder  with  horses;  she  rode  in 
India,"  Lois  told  him. 


242         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

"Well,  I  am  surprised;  of  course  I  knew  Polly 
could  do  it,  but  Maud,  that  meek  little  thing,  it's 
hard  to  believe." 

"Oh,  Maud's  not  so  meek  as  you  think,' '  Polly 
said,  as  they  made  their  way  to  the  barn.  Bob 
and  she  still  kept  up  their  habit  of  saying  good 
night  to  the  dogs,  in  spite  of  the  alarming  cold- 
ness between  them.  The  only  difference  was,  that 
now  Lois  always  went  with  them. 

As  they  entered  the  barn,  they  heard  an  angry 
yoice  saying : 

"I  tell  you,  she's  too  fresh  for  a  girl.  I  wish 
she  would  go  away  to  school." 

The  speaker  proved  to  be  the  little  boy  that 
Maud  in  her  loneliness  had  discovered.  He  was 
sitting  on  the  grain  box  talking  to  Tim. 

"Who's  too  fresh?"  Bob  asked,  laughing. 

"That  kid  next  door,"  the  youngster  answered 
in  an  aggrieved  voice. 

"Why  what's  she  done  to  you?"  Bob  asked. 

"Oh,  nothin',"  came  the  abashed  reply,  "that 
is,  nothin'  much." 

"Tell  me  about  it,"  Lois  commanded. 

After  sufficient  urging,  the  boy  said : 

"Well,  just  'cause  I  called  hei  a  coward,  'cause 
she  wouldn't  jump  from  the  loft  in  her  barn,  she 
slayped  my  face." 

"What!"  exclaimed  everybody  in  one  breath. 
"Maud  slapped  you?" 


Thoughts  of  School 


243 


"Yes,  she  did  and — " 

"What  did  you  say  about  school?' '  Polly  in- 
terrupted any  further  complaint. 

"Ah,  I  just  said,  I  wish'd  she  go.  She  talks 
about  how  maybe  she  will  go  some  day  with  youse 
and—  " 

But  Polly  and  Lois  did  not  hear  the  rest ;  they 
stood  looking  at  each  other  in  amazement. 
Finally  Polly  said : 

"Victory — I  told  you  she  would." 

"I  can't  see  why  you  tried  to  make  her,"  Bob 
said  later  in  the  evening.  "If  she  does  go  you'll 
have  to  look  after  her  all  the  time,  and  you  won't 
enjoy  that." 

"I  know  it,"  Polly  said  ruefully.  "I  don't 
know  why  I  did  it  either ;  I  thought  she  ought  to, 
somehow. ' ' 

"That's  it,  it  is  just  the  way  you  always 
have  of  making  people  do  what  you  want  them  to, 
no  matter  whether  they  want  to  or  not,"  Lois  said 
with  some  severity,  looking  to  Bob  for  support. 

Bob,  seeing  the  hurt  expression  in  Polly's  face, 
said  hurriedly: 

"Nonsense,  it's  just  because  you're  you,  Poll, 
and  you  can't  help  being  the  boss  any  more  than 
the  rest  of  us  can  help  doing  what  you  say." 

Mrs.  Parwell,  writing  in  the  corner,  looked  up, 
smiled,  and  then  went  back  to  her  letter  with  a 
sigh  of  relief. 


CHAPTER  XIX 

SHOPPING 

Polly's  victory  was  short  lived.  Maud  had  not 
made  up  her  mind  to  go  to  Seddon  Hall.  Quick 
to  follow  up  what  they  considered  a  big  advan- 
tage, the  girls  had  pressed  the  point,  but  they 
could  get  nothing  but  the  "Oh,  I  couldn't,''  from 
Maud. 

Two  weeks  had  been  spent  in  useless  argu- 
ments, and  now  it  was  too  late.  School  would 
open  in  a  week.  The  girls  dismissed  the  subject 
— Lois  with  relief,  Polly  with  a  queer  feeling  that 
it  was  only  a  temporary  defeat — and  turned  their 
thoughts  to  the  more  important  preparations  for 
school. 

i 6 We  must  think  about  your  clothes,  girls," 
Mrs.  Farwell  said  one  morning.  It  was  just  after 
breakfast,  and  they  were  all  in  the  living  room 
around  the  hearth.  It  was  one  of  those  raw 
days,  so  frequent  in  early  autumn,  that  carry  the 
chill  of  Winter  with  them  and  make  fires  wel- 
come. Mrs.  Farwell  was  sitting  in  a  big  arm 
chair,  Polly  was  toasting  her  feet  on  the  fender, 
and  Lois  was  sitting  on  the  floor  at  her  mother's 
feet. 

244 


Shopping 


245 


"I  suppose  so,"  Lois  sighed.  "Clothes  make 
me  tired;  they  are  an  awful  nuisance.  Thank 
goodness,  we  just  need  sailor  suits." 

"Aren't  the  ones  we  had  last  year  all  right, 
Aunt  Kate?"  Polly  asked. 

"They  are  a  little  short,  I'm  afraid,"  Mrs.  Far- 
well  laughed.  "You've  no  idea  how  you've 
grown.  I'm  not  worried  about  the  sailor  suits 
though.  They  are  easily  ordered,  but  you  must 
have  some  new  dresses  for  dances,  and  as  for 
stockings,  I  don't  believe  either  of  you  have  a  sin- 
gle pair  that  isn't  all  darned,  so  that  they  are 
hardly  recognizable." 

"There  are  shoes  too,"  Lois  put  in. 

"And  you  know  what  my  hat  looked  like  when 
we  got  back  from  camp, ' '  Polly  reminded. 

"Yes,  I  know.  There  is  only  one  thing  to  do," 
Mrs.  Farwell  said.  "We'll  have  to  go  down  to 
the  City  and  shop. ' ' 

"Oh,  Mother!" 

"Aunt  Kate!" 

The  girls  looked  reproachfully  at  her. 

"We've  so  little  time  left  up  here,  couldn't  we 
order  by  mail,  or  something  f ' '  Polly  pleaded. 

"I  know,  I'm  sorry,  but  I'm  afraid  there  is 
nothing  else  to  do.  We'll  start  early  in  the 
morning  and  take  a  late  train  home.  It's  only 
one  day." 

"One  glorious  day,  and  I'm  just  learning  to 


246         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


catch  those  colts,"  Lois  groaned.  "Mother,  cant 
you  go  without  us?" 

Mrs.  Farwell  put  back  her  head  and  laughed 
heartily. 

"You  little  wretches,  would  you  really  let  me 
go  all  alone?  How  could  I  buy  shoes  for  you? 
I'll  tell  you,  if  you'll  tear  yourselves  away  from 
the  colts  for  one  day,  I'll  promise  you  that  you 
will  have  a  good  time  in  the  City. ' ' 

Polly  left  the  fender,  and  perched  on  the  arm 
of  Mrs.  Farwell 's  chair. 

"Of  course  well  go,  Aunt  Kate,  and  we'll  have 
a  good  time  too;  it's  only  for  one  day  anyhow." 

"What's  only  for  one  day?"  Bob  inquired.  He 
had  just  finished  breakfast  and  this  was  his  first 
appearance. 

"Oh,  we've  got  to  go  to  town  and  buy  clothes," 
Lois  said,  "and  we  don't  want  to." 
"When  are  you  going?" 

"Why,  I  guess  we  may  as  well  go  to-morrow 
and  get  it  over  with.  The  girls  feel  as  though 
they  were  going  to  a  funeral. ' ' 

"Don't  you  want  to  come  with  us?"  Lois  in- 
quired. 

"No,  thanks."  Bob  was  imperative  in  his  re- 
fusal. "I  can't  see  myself  buying  shoes  for  you 
and  Poll.    I  '11  keep  shop  here,  while  you  're  gone. ' ' 

"Oh,  all  right;  we  only  asked  you  to  be  polite," 
Lois  teased.    "Come  on,  Polly,  let's  go  get  Maud 


Shopping 


247 


and  go  out  to  the  pasture.  I'm  going  to  catch 
that  black  colt,  or  die  in  the  attempt." 

"You  are?"  Bob  jumped  to  his  feet.  "Then 
I'm  coming  to  see  the  fun." 

"Do  be  careful,  Lois,"  Mrs.  Farwell  called  after 
them,  as  they  went  out  of  the  front  door. 

The  next  morning,  they  were  up  bright  and 
early.  The  train  left  at  eight  o'clock,  and  Polly 
was  in  Lois'  room  at  six-thirty. 

"Get  up,  you  lazy  thing,  or  we'll  miss  our 
train,"  she  said,  shaking  her. 

Lois  rolled  over,  opened  one  sleepy  eye,  strug- 
gled to  waken  but  gave  it  up  and  burrowed  her 
head  deeper  into  the  pillow. 

Polly  applied  a  cold  sponge.  It  had  the  de- 
sired effect. 

i ' Ouch !  stop !  I'll  get  up,  I  promise.  Oh,  Poll, 
you — you've  given  me  a  chill." 

"Well,  get  up  then;  it's  late,  I  tell  you." 

"I  suppose  I'd  better  get  used  to  it.  I  can  just 
hear  that  beastly  old  rising  bell  clanging  away  be- 
fore sun-rise,"  she  complained.  "That's  the  only 
thing  I  hate  about  school." 

"Oh,  you'll  get  used  to  it;  just  think  how  cold 
it  will  be  jumping  into  an  icy  bath,"  Polly  called 
from  her  room. 

They  dressed  hastily,  and  seven  o'clock  saw 
them  at  the  breakfast  table,  and  much  to  their  sur- 
prise Bob  was  down  too. 


248         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

"I  had  to  see  you  off.  I  told  Tim  I'd  drive  you 
to  the  station;  he's  busy  getting  in  the  hay  and 
he  objects  to  having  the  middle  of  his  day  broken 
in  upon.  He's  been  up  since  four,"  he  explained 
in  answer  to  Polly's  exclamation  of  surprise.  6 61 
said  I'd  hitch  up  too,  so  hurry  with  breakfast, 
Polly,  for  you've  got  to  help  me." 

Polly  hurried,  astonished  at  the  tone  of  com- 
radeship that  had  come  back  into  Bob's  voice. 

"All  ready,"  she  answered,  pushing  her  chair 
back  from  the  table.  "We'll  be  round  in  ten  min- 
utes," she  told  Mrs.  Farwell. 

"It's  a  bully  day,"  Bob  said,  over  the  harness- 
ing. 

"Yes,  specially  for  tennis,"  Polly  retorted,  but 
she  could  have  cut  out  her  tongue  a  second  later 
for  saying  it. 

Bob  just  looked  at  her ;  he  was  a  little  surprised 
and  a  little  hurt.  It  dawned  on  him  for  the  first 
time  that  Polly  might  be  jealous ;  it  seemed  to  ex- 
plain her  queer  attitude. 

They  finished  harnessing  in  silence  and  drove 
around  to  the  front  of  the  house. 

Once  on  the  train,  Polly  tried  to  forget  the  inci- 
dent, but,  in  her  heart  of  hearts,  she  realized  she 
had  stooped  to  a  very  silly  exhibition  of  temper 
and  she  regretted  it  sorely. 

They  planned  and  made  lists  until  they  pulled 
into  the  Grand  Central  Station.   Uncle  Roddy 


Shopping 


249 


was  there  to  meet  them  with  his  car.  After  de- 
ciding where  they  should  meet  for  luncheon,  he 
left  them  with  parting  instructions  to  Polly : 

"Buy  what  you  want,  Tiddledewinks,  but 
don't  break  the  bank." 

They  whisked  as  fast  as  traffic  would  permit  to 
Thirty-fourth  Street,  and  from  that  point,  the 
busiest  of  days  began.  They  went  to  Peter 
Thompson's  and  were  measured  for  sailor  suits, 
and  for  half  an  hour  they  reveled  in  colored  ties. 
The  first  really  serious  purchase  was  hats.  Polly 
was  impossible  to  suit. 

"No,  I  don't  like  it,"  she  would  say,  as  the  pa- 
tient saleswoman  brought  out  hat  after  hat. 
1 1 They  all  look  silly." 

"I  think  you  are  right,  Polly,"  Mrs.  Farwell 
said,  resignedly.  "Velvet  hats  do  look  silly  this 
time  of  year,  but  so  do  straw  ones." 

"Why  not  compromise  on  soft  felt?"  the  sales- 
woman suggested,  and  produced  broad  brimmed 
felts  in  every  shade. 

Polly  was  appeased  at  once  and  selected  one 
of  rich  hunter's  green. 

"There,  that's  comfortable,"  she  said  as  she 
pulled  it  down  on  her  head  and  tilted  it  at  a  be- 
witching angle. 

"And  becoming  too,  Polly  dear,"  Mrs.  Farwell 
agreed;  "green  is  your  color.  Now.  Lois,  what 
do  you  want?" 


250         Polly's  Slimmer  Vacation 

Lois  looked  at  the  sea  of  hats  before  her, 
and  selected  the  funniest  one  of  the  lot,  put  it  on 
the  back  of  her  head  and  faced  her  mother. 
Polly  and  Mrs.  Farwell  broke  into  gales  of 
laughter.  Nothing  could  have  been  more  absurd 
than  the  tailor  made  Lois  in  that  befeathered 
hat. 

"Take  it  off,  Lois,"  pleaded  Mrs.  Farwell,  "and 
get  one  like  Polly's." 

"Not  a  green  one,"  Lois  protested;  "I  want 
mine  brown."  When  she  put  the  desired  one  on 
the  effect  was  quite  as  pleasing  as  Polly 's. 

Silk  dresses  came  next,  a  green  one  for  Polly 
of  stiff  taffeta,  and  a  brown  one  for  Lois.  They 
were  made  exactly  alike,  and  the  girls  were  de- 
lighted with  them. 

"That's  enough  clothes  for  to-day,  Mother; 
let's  eat,"  Lois  said  as  they  left  the  store  and 
entered  the  waiting  car. 

Luncheon  was  a  merry  affair.  They  called  for 
Uncle  Koddy  first  and  then  drove  to  the  hotel. 
The  afternoon  they  spent  in  buying  shoes. 

"Well,  that  wasn't  so  bad,  after  all,"  Lois 
sighed  as  they  climbed  into  the  train,  "and,  thank 
goodness,  it's  over." 

Tim  met  them  at  the  station,  and  Polly  won- 
dered where  Bob  was.  They  found  him  stretched 
out  in  the  hammock  on  the  piazza  when  they  ar- 
rived. 


Shopping 


251 


"Have  you  been  here  all  day?"  Lois  demanded, 
sitting  down  beside  him. 

"No,  indeed,  I've  had  a  very  strenuous  time," 
Bob  told  her. 

"What  doing,  playing  tennis"  Lois  asked. 

Bob  and  Polly  looked  at  each  other  quickly  and 
then  looked  away. 

"No,  I  have  not,  I've  been  out  taming  colts 
all  day,  with  Maud,"  he  told  them;  "she  tired  me 
out."   Then,  as  the  girls  started  to  go  in  he  said: 

"Hold  on  a  minute,  Polly,  will  you?  I  want  to 
talk  to  you.    Come  on  for  a  walk." 

He  slipped  out  of  the  hammock,  and  they  walked 
towards  the  barn. 

"What's  been  the  matter  with  you  lately, 
Poll?"  he  demanded,  when  they  were  off  the 
piazza.    "You've  been  acting  awfully  funny." 

Polly  was  about  to  say:  "Why  nothing,"  but 
thought  better  of  it;  instead  she  said: 

"I  don't  knowr,  Bob,  I  guess  I've  been  cross, 
but  I  don't  exactly  know  why.  I'm  awfully 
sorry;  I'm  not  any  more." 

"Thank  goodness  for  that;  if  it's  nothing,  we 
won't  talk  about  it.  All  I  want  is,  to  be  friends 
again.   I've  missed  you  awfully,  Poll." 

"Of  course  we'll  be  friends.  I've  missed  you, 
too.  I  don't  know  what  got  into  me."  Polly 
looked  up  shyly.  "That  is,  I  know,  but  I  won't 
tell." 


252         Polly's  Summer  Vacation 


"You  don't  have  to,  I  know  already.    It  was 
Anita." 
"Bob!" 

"Well,  wasn't  it!" 
"Yes." 

"You  silly  kid,  why,  that  girl  with  all  her  frills 
can't  hold  a  candle  to  you,  and  you  know  it." 
"Then  why—" 

' '  Oh,  she  was  fun  to  talk  to,  but  she  never  could 
be  a  good  chum  like  you,"  Bob  said  with  spirit. 
Then,  fearing  perhaps  that  they  had  dwelt  long 
enough  on  this  embarrassing  subject,  he  said 
abruptly : 

"Let's  go  see  the  dogs." 


CHAPTEK  XX 


THE  END  OE  THE  SUMMER 

The  last  days  of  the  summer  vacation  came  with 
startling  haste.  Polly  and  Lois  and  Bob  had 
crowded  into  them  as  mnch  as  they  possibly  could, 
but  they  had  flown  by  all  too  fast. 

Polly  stood  on  the  veranda  steps  in  a  chaos  of 
trunks  and  bags.  She  was  waiting  for  Lois  and 
Mrs.  Farwell.  Bob  had  left  for  college  the  night 
before.  The  spirit  of  departure  seemed  to  hang 
in  the  air. 

Sometimes  in  the  midst  of  hurry  we  think  our 
quietest  thoughts.  In  her  own  way,  Polly  was  re- 
viewing the  vacation,  and  a  summary  of  her 
thoughts  left  a  smile  of  happy  reminiscence  on  her 
lips. 

"It  has  been  wonderful,''  she  said,  half  aloud, 
5 6 what  fun  we've  had.  It  seems  like  a  dream,  now 
that  it 's  all  over.  I  wish  it  had  been  a  little  longer, 
I'll  miss  it  all,  the  dogs,  Bob,  and  even  funny  little 
Maud,  but,"  she  added,  as  her  eyes  fell  on  the 
trunks,  "it's  going  to  be  great  getting  back  to 
school."  And  her  fancy  took  flight  until  Seddon 
Hall  stretched  out  before  her,  dotted  with  all  the 

253 


254        Polly's  Summer  Vacation 

dear,  familiar  objects,  and  her  ear  caught  the  wel- 
coming shouts  of  the  girls — her  friends,  all  of 
them.    The  picture  left  no  room  for  regret. 

' i Come  on,  Poll,  we're  off."  Lois'  voice 
brought  her  back  with  a  start. 

They  climbed  into  the  carriage  and  rolled  swiftly 
away.  The  big  house  on  the  hill  looked  desolate 
in  the  sunshine,  with  its  shuttered  windows. 

As  they  passed  the  Kent  place  they  called  out 
a  last  good-by  to  Maud,  standing  alone  and  for- 
lorn in  the  driveway.  She  seemed  in  part  with 
the  deserted  house  and  strangely  empty  fields. 
Polly  and  Lois  were  of  another  world.  They  did 
not  look  back,  for  their  eyes,  as  well  as  their 
thoughts  were  fixed  in  happy  anticipation  of  the 
coming  year  at  Seddon  Hall. 


THE  END 


THE  "POLLY"  SERIES 

By  DOROTHY  WHITEHILL 

Polly  Pendleton  is  a  resouce- 
ful,  wide-awake  American  girl 
who  goes  to  a  boarding  school 
on  the  Hudson  River  some  miles 
above  New  York.  By  her  pluck 
and  resourcefulness,  she  soon 
makes  a  place  for  herself  and 
this  she  holds  right  through  the 
course.  The  account  of  boarding 
school  life  is  faithful  and  pleas- 
ing and  will  attract  every  girl  in 
her  teens. 

Cloth,  large  12  mo.  Illustrated 

1  POLLY'S  FIRST  YEAR  AT  BOARDING  SCHOOL 

2  POLLY'S  SUMMER  VACATION 

3  POLLY'S  SENIOR  YEAR  AT  BOARDING  SCHOOL 

4  POLLY  SEES  THE  WORLD  AT  WAR 

5  POLLY  AND  LOIS 

6  POLLY  AND  BOB 

7  POLLY'S  REUNION 

8  POLLY'S  POLLY 

9  POLLY  AT  PIXIES'  HAUNT 
10  POLLY'S  HOUSE  PARTY 


POLLY'S 

FIRST  YEAR  AT 
BOARDING  SCHOOL 


DOROTHY  WHITEHILL 


BARSE  &  HOPKINS 
New  York,  N.  Y.  Newark,  N.  J, 


CHARMING  STORIES  FOR  GIRLS 

The  Corner  House  Girls  Series 


By  GRACE  BROOKS  HILL 


Tfie CORNER 
HOUSE  GIRLS 


GRACE  BROOKS  HILL 


Four  girls  from  eight  to  fourteen 
years  of  age  receive  word  that  a  rich 
bachelor  uncle  has  died,  leaving 
them  the  old  Corner  House  he  occu- 
pied. They  move  into  it  and  then 
the  fun  begins.  What  they  find  and 
do  will  provoke  many  a  hearty 
laugh.  Later,  they  enter  school  and 
make  many  friends.  One  of  these  in- 
vites the  girls  to  spend  a  few  weeks 
at  a  bungalow  owned  by  her  parents, 
and  the  adventures  they  meet  with 
make  very  interesting  reading. 
Clean,  wholesome  stories  of  humor 
and  adventure,  sure  to  appeal  to  all 
young  girls. 


1  CORNER  HOUSE  GIRLS. 

2  CORNER  HOUSE  GIRLS  AT  SCHOOL. 

3  CORNER  HOUSE  GIRLS  UNDER  CANVAS. 

4  CORNER  HOUSE  GIRLS  IN  A  PLAY. 

5  CORNER  HOUSE  GIRLS'  ODD  FIND. 

6  CORNER  HOUSE  GIRLS  ON  A  TOUR. 

7  CORNER  HOUSE  GIRLS  GROWING  UP. 

8  CORNER  HOUSE  GIRLS  SNOWBOUND. 

9  CORNER  HOUSE  GIRLS  ON  A  HOUSEBOAT. 

10  CORNER  HOUSE  GIRLS  AMONG  THE  GYPSIES. 

11  CORNER  HOUSE  GIRLS  ON  PALM  ISLAND. 
13  THE  CORNER  HOUSE  GIRLS  SOLVE  A 

MYSTERY 

13  THE  CORNER  HOUSE  GIRLS  FACING  THE 
WORLD. 


BARS  IS  &  HOPKINS 
New  York,  N.  Y.  Newark,  N.  J. 


